Making Mends, Breaking Barriers
by Ace-Of-Spades-2014
Summary: Oliver Queen is breaking away from his self-destructive path, and he's hellbent on making sure Chloe does the same.
1. Chapter 1

Oliver Queen was a great appreciator of beautiful things. This trait of his hand rightfully earned him the title of playboy, a carefree addiction to all things gorgeous. Yet, he wasn't as shallow as people believed him to be. For the beauty he was attracted to was more than the outward appearance that caught everyone else's attention. He enjoyed the type of beauty that came with that extra spark, something that could only be created by an electric personality.

Years ago, before Oliver had taken on the mantel of Green Arrow, Tess Mercer had been one of those women whose beauty was not found in red tresses or skin made from pearls or well-sculpted cheekbones or event the lavious curves. Rather, Oliver had been captivated by cunning, dark green eyes and an intellect that had saved them both. Tess had that spark. At least, she had it once upon a time.

Then there was Lois Lane, the one he had thought just might be the love of his life, even past the point in which he came to understand that he wasn't hers. True, he had originally invited her to the ball because of her dark hair and long legs, but as the evening wore on, he became enamored by her sharp tongue and hate towards anything resembling abuse of power. She had quickly proven herself to have no interest in his status or money, as she paraded herself around the ball mocking the rich and shaming the corrupt.

Even now Lois had that spark that lit her entire being. Except now, Oliver wasn't the only man to see past the beautiful appearance to the glorious light that shone inside her. He supposed he was still sore over the fact that Lois had told him off for good and was now being awkwardly courted by the Boy Scout.

And it may have been too much to deal with at the time. After all, Oliver had already been in a desperate state. Fighting against Clark in the mess that had been Doomsday and caused a rift between the two that had Oliver questioning his morality and the reasons he had done certain, unspeakable things. Jimmy's death had been much worse. The loss of a civilian, especially one as innocent and harmless as the photographer, had devastated the entire team. Without anyone to turn to in his self-hatred and depreciation, Oliver had turned away from everything and it had left him as empty as he needed to be.

Sometimes he wished that he had stayed that way. Being empty with nothing but alcohol and drugs to fill him, the occasional warm body to be used, had been much easier.

Too much had happened, though, and it was impossible to go back. He couldn't return to being useless after the horror he had allowed Lois to endure during the vampire virus. He couldn't go back to forgetting his ins after what the Toyman had put him through. And he certainly couldn't go back to his self-destructive ways after Chloe had done so much to remind him that he had become a hero for a reason.

So he had tried to get back onto his feet. He saved a young girl from the human darkness that lurked in the shadowed streets and tried to teach her how to defend herself. Then he had tried to show Lois he could return to who he had been when she had first met him, hoping to regain at least one person by his side, only to be shut down quite quickly.

All of that had led him to the WatchTower, a shot glass of whiskey barely sipped on the table as he played with his bow and arrows. Chloe was on her computers on the raised platform. He originally attempted to spend the time alone in his loft while the world outside had decided to stay calm for the time being, but alone meant dwelling on mistakes and the painful consequences of those mistakes. If he had stayed he'd have gone mad and done something reckless. He needed a distraction.

There had been plenty of choices concerning what distractions, he might delve into but with trying to turn over a new leaf, those choices had dwindled. Now the only thing he could find that wouldn't drag him back down was to enjoy the truest form of pleasure there was on earth: beauty.

And, despite what many ignore, Chloe was most definitely beautiful. Just like her cousin, Chloe had that spark inside her that was too brilliant to shield away.

There were times when Oliver wondered what would have happened if he had met Chloe first. If he hadn't already become infatuated with Lois's loud mouth and uncouth manners. Or if he hadn't found out Clark's secret, so that when he was introduced to the feisty blonde he had only seen her as an association to the super being. But she hadn't been the first person he had met in Kansas, and he had spent the last couple of years enjoying that beautiful spark just as a friend and partner

Still, Oliver had always seen that spark. It was the reason he couldn't help but smile when in her presence and why, when he found out that she wasn't just Clark's fiend but also his sidekick, he worked hard to get her on his side of things.

He had to admit that sometimes he thought about tempting her into something more, but it never felt right. After it had ended with Lois, it wouldn't have been right to ask anything from her cousin. There was also Jimmy to consider, an off and on thing, but still something that Oliver had no right to get in the middle of. Then, of course, there was the ever looming presence of Clark.

It had just never been the right time. Which had probably been a good thing, because he hadn't all that great of a track record with dating those he saw that beautiful spark in. The fact that he and Chloe had never been more had probably saved them from the same fate.

Now he found himself thinking about the possibility again.

"Hey," he called for her attention.

"Yes?"

"Want to come down to help me with this bottle?"

Without looking, she replied, "You've hardly even had any yourself."

"Which is why I need help."

She shook her head with a tilted smile, but made no sign to come down.

After her smooth rejection, he still kept his eyes on her. He wondered what she was working on now that held her attention so completely. Was it something for Clark? Or maybe it was something she and Dr. Hamilton were working on. Maybe one of her own personal missions that she kept secret from everyone.

Whatever it was, he decided to wait. Watching her in her element was much more appealing than doing nothing at all, and it was wiser than taking up any of his more recent ways of distracting himself.

A faint rumble came from her direction and he chuckled. "I know this Chinese restaurant that opened up about a block away." She paused in her typing thinking it over seriously. "I'm paying."

She smiled slightly, thought a bit more about it before her stomach rumbled again, and she pushed herself up.


	2. Chapter 2

"So," she stared at him over the plate of food, "what's going on with you?"

"Hmm?" Her green eyes narrowed, telling him exactly that she knew something was wrong, or at the very least off about him. "I thought Watch Tower was open to any hero in need."

"And are you in need Oliver?" There was a teasing shine to her eyes as there often was when she took to flirting with her heroic counterparts.

He smiled in reply. "Need of quality companionship."

Oliver and Chloe had flirted plenty of times, so it was nothing that would seem odd to her. They were both flirtatious begins, though with different intentions behind most of those encounters. She tended to flirt as a way to bridge the gap between her and her friends - all of whom were male for some reason - and he flirted with the goal of either gaining information or convincing a woman to sleep with him. The only exception for him was Chloe, who he had always teased just to tease.

Which is why, when he flirted with her now, Chloe didn't take him seriously. She just laughed softly with her lips in a coy smirk.

They finished their meal in their easy flirtatious teases and smiles, enjoying the break from the drama that came from their line of work. Oliver certainly, took the time to enjoy the opportunity to get away from it all, at least for awhile. This was Chloe, though, and as easy as it was to talk to her and joke, she took pride in her ability to aid those that had claimed themselves to be heroes. The job that she had assigned to herself was her purpose. So he shouldn't have been surprised that once they were out of the public restaurant she began discussing the more important matters.

She told him about Zoe and his army, running off her ideas about what they were planning. She mentioned Tess with a roll of her eyes, about the involvement with the Kryptonians and complaining about the security measures. She shared her findings of her and Emil's recent researches. Through it all Oliver listened attentively, occasionally adding his own comments about the issues. In what he thought was only an hour or two became well after midnight with a yawning, blurry-eyed blonde.

Oliver Queen couldn't handle being alone. He was no good at being alone. He needed people around him to make the emptiness away, to put noise into the overwhelming silence. Without people, Oliver was lost within herself, and, he had learned long ago, he as himself wasn't a good person at all.

As a child, safe in his loving family and spoiled by the riches that came with the Queen name, Oliver had been a bully. He hadn't cared for those that his 'friends' deemed to be a lesser sort, and the only thing that had mattered to him was peer approval. To keep that approval, he had done awful things. Things that were too deeply buried inside of himself now, eating him away with the shame and guilt.

It was a hard truth to accept that if his parents hadn't died, he'd be as bad as Lex had turned out, or worse.

Back then, peer attention had led him down immoral paths. After his parents' death, he had given up those peers and everything else. He had drawn into himself, hating himself every day for the torment that he had put others through. Then after the island, he tried to regain some interactions, though it was under pretense, and a little bit of life was put back inside him. That life became much brighter when he had managed to gather a gang of misfits and convinced them to play heroes in what they ended up calling the Justice League.

It was with them that Oliver felt truly alive. Like he had purpose. Working alongside his team, he didn't have to pretend he was anyone but who he was and he didn't have to handle it all on his own. More than that, the fake smiles and jokes of bravado weren't for show anymore. It was just him.

When the team had disbanded that life had seeped out once again. It was their leaving, on top of everything else, that broke Oliver had made him into the man he had been for the past couple of months.

Not that he blamed them. He had failed them. Had failed to save those he should have focused on protecting. Even before that, he reasoned in his dark moments, they would have been right to leave. Though he may have pretended to be a hero, even a leader of heroes, he wasn't. A hero didn't cheat or cut corners the way he did. A hero didn't kill.

It was those thoughts when he was without his team had led him down the road he had gone. And it was those thoughts that made him realize that he needed them back.

It was also those draining and persistent thoughts that made him wonder if that was what Chloe was going through too. If she was lost just like him. Granted, she was handling it better than he had, but if he were right then she was on the road to self-destruction that he had just gotten out of.

It may have even crossed his mind that the same was true for Clark. In that regards, though, Oliver was in no shape to help. Anyways, Lois seemed to be doing her part in keeping Clark grounded, leaving Oliver with the moping blonde holed up in Watch Tower.

It would be a mutual benefit for theme to be each other's sounding board, Oliver reasoned as he made his way up to the entrance of Watch Tower the fourth time that week. He needed someone so he wouldn't go off the deep end again, and she needed someone to entice her back into the real world of human beings.

Which was the line of thinking that had him visiting the Watch Tower every day the next week. Chloe, like each time he had come by, gave little mind to his presence, leaving him to roam the Tower, impressed what she and Emil had used his money for. He tried to bother her too, but she was resilient in her place in front of the computers and all he received was a laugh and maybe a quick, witty retort.

"Hungry?" He wondered, rolling one of the extra chairs right beside her. It was close to ten and her stomach had yet to rumble for her to be forced away by her own needs. He moved closer into her space, his chin hovering over her shoulder. "When did you last eat?"

"Hmm?"

"Chloe," he took the back of her chair and pulled her away from the keyboard. "Have you eaten today?"

"I'm fine," she insisted. "And I'm busy. So if you would excuse me."

This was typically how those days went, with her obsessed by whatever she had on her computers. She only allowed to be taken away when it became obvious that she needed to eat. It was only then, forced away from the Tower, that she would engage in actual conversation and participate in their harmless teasing of one another.

He wanted to breach the subject with her, but he wasn't sure how to go about it. Though she had been able to bring him back from the edge, he was still unsure whether he had the same right to do the same for her.

So he went to Lois. She was surprised when he asked about Chloe, but after the initial shock she smiled and admitted that since Jimmy's death her cousin hadn't gotten out much. "She rarely even comes home, or if she does, it's not when I'm here." Worry was evident in her tone, before it turned to curiosity and suspicion. "Why are you taking such an interest?"

"Just concerned."

"Yea, and that's nice of you, but I wasn't aware you and my cousin were such good friends. I mean, I've only seen you around her a few times for things for me or Clark. Care to explain?"

Realizing his misstep, Oliver thought quickly. "Met her a few times with you and Clark. Found out about her skill sets, and hired her."

"Chloe never mentioned that."

He frowned. "It was right after she got fired from the Daily Planet. I don't think she was all that proud about being paid to help me out."

Lois nodded, but her eyes were still suspicious. Maybe even a little accusatory. "What exactly has Chloe been helming you with? Oliver Queen stuff, or Green Arrow?"

"Hello with the security and research component of the business stuff. Don't worry, she doesn't know about the alter ego."

She laughed, shaking her head like he was just a naive simpleton. "Oh, sorry to break it to you Queen, but if Chloe's been working with you in any capacity, she knows." That was true enough. Chloe had mentioned that day she had stormed into his loft that she had found out about his secret all on her own.

After his talk with Lois, he became even more insistent in obtaining Chloe's attention so that he could coax her away from a lonely life in the Tower. He hoped to persuade her away from the computers without directly stating his concern, but in that following week and a half there were no changes in her behavior. She was still locked away from the outside world, not caring that there was a life behind its walls that she was missing out on. To be honest, it was getting a little frustrating.

Then one day Oliver's visit was interrupted by the sudden blur of the Boy Scout. "Do you have the documents yet for Zod's people?"

Chloe reacted as if his sudden presence was suspected and answered coolly. "Not yet. It takes time to get everything right. I'm trying to be thorough."

Oliver watched from the main floor as Clark stared down at Chloe with concern etched into his expression. "Of course," he tried to placate, aware that she seemed to be agitated by something, though unable to guess the reason. "I'm just trying to get them settled as soon as possible."

"Yea, and I'm going as fast as I can."

Clark continued to stare at her, but eventually decided trying to understand her wa a lost cause. When he turned, he seemed to finally realize that Oliver was in the tower as well. His eyes squinted in confusion and suspiciousness. Instead of zooming off, Clark stepped from the stairs.

"You've been here a lot," he stated, demanding an explanation without asking the question directly.

"Well," Oliver tried to joke it away, "this is hero headquarters."

At the word "hero", Clark's eyes narrowed momentarily as if on instinct. Oliver didn't blame the reaction. They hadn't had the best encounter that year, mainly because of Oliver's downward spiral. "Doesn't really seem like you're here for business."

"Friend business," which only served to increase the Boy Scout's suspicion. With a hard glare (as hard as the small town Kansas boy could get), he blurred away.

"Friend business?" Chloe laughed, her chair swerving around to gaze down at him. He grinned in triumph at having gained her full attention. Though there was a shimmer of suspicion beginning to form her eyes, seeming to have just realized that Oliver indeed had been there quite often with no real hero business needing to be attended to, but she smirked anyways. He counted it as a win, as small as it might be.

"Any reason you seem to be angry with Clark?"

The question irritated her, making the teasing lift of her smile disappear. "I thought out of anyone you could understand why."

And he did on some level. Clark did have the annoying habit of always having the just answer, not letting anything as pathetic as human weakness get in the way, which could be a hard trait to deal with for the mere humans that were connected to him. Chloe, however, had always seemed to sympathize with Clark, giving him the benefit of the doubt. It was an understanding that Oliver was just recently letting sink in.

It couldn't be easy living in this world, believing he was the only one like himself, growing up without the knowledge of who he actually was. Then suddenly, after all the struggles and hard decisions that had to be made, to be given the chance to learn more about the people that he should have belonged to. After all the loss he had endured and the mistakes that had had dire consequences, he was presented with the opportunity of mending old wounds and reconciling a bond that had been broken years ago. And maybe it was a lost cause, just as Cloom had been, but at least there was a chance to fit it, and hopefully render all other dar more volatile outcomes obsolete.

If Oliver had been able to understand this about Clark's situation, it was surprising that Chloe wasn't willing to give Clark a break. She, more than anyone, should have realized why he was going through all this trouble.

"It doesn't matter," she scoffed when he didn't respond immediately, "I'm working on it, alright? It's not like I'm not doing my job." She was back at her keys, typing away furiously.

Then again, he was beginning to think, maybe Chloe did understand Clark's motives. It was Chloe after all, that had been by Clark's side from the beginning and had stayed all these years. Even when she hadn't known the truth, she had trusted him, knowing that whatever he was hiding was because he thought it was for the best. Then, when she had learned his secret, she had gone out of her way to keep that secret, and to provide the help he would need. Though different, and obviously set apart, Clark had never been alone. Through all the darkness and villains and evil plots, Clark had always had Chloe.

As her shoulders tensed and her fingers jabbed aggressively, Oliver's observing eyes sifted. Chloe felt like she was on the verge of being abandoned. She understood Clark perfectly, and in that understanding, had begun to fear that he would leave her behind as he joined with his own people.

The thought of being abandoned was never easy to accept for anyone, but Oliver knew it was a little more difficult to bear when there was a history of abandonment. For the majority of her life, she had felt abandoned by her mother, a feeling that wasn't soothed even after learning the reason why. Once, a long time ago, she had let it slop that she felt abandoned by her father, who had stopped checking up on her not long after she had moved to the city. "It's my fault," she had tried to convince both of them, "neither of us were really quite the same after Lionel tried to kill us and we were forced into hiding."

Jimmy had left her too, another thing Chloe blamed herself for. Though Oliver had sympathized with the guy about what had happened, he had to admit that he had hated the photographer just a little for leaving the blonde with the cruel words that he had. "Being with you was the worst mistake of my life," caught by handful of witnesses and hospital security cameras. Then, most recently, and possibly the most damaging, the abandonment of the team that had taken her in.

And now she believed her best friend would be the next to go. How could anyone blame her for being on edge?

All of this was the last motivation that Oliver needed to decide that Chloe needed to be saved from herself, and that he would be the one to save her. These visits and small talks weren't enough. She needed more.


	3. Chapter 3

One thing was for certain when it concerned the Chloe of the last few months was that she was obsessed with her work. As far as he could see in the time that he was visiting her, only the obsolete need for good and aiding Lois or Emil could take her away the Tower or being at Clark's side as his distant sidekick. He hoped that her actions from before proved that if he needed her, she'd come out of the Tower for him as well.

He managed to convince her that he needed better security for the loft - requesting her for the job he had told Lois she had been doing for years. Like the everwilling sidekick she was, Chloe agreed to come by to help, leaving her computers and her adored Tower behind for the evening.

This did mean, however, that Oliver did have to allow her to do the work he had requested of her. Meaning that she was still caught up in a state of concentration, only changing the pace of setting, but something was better than nothing. That first day she surveyed the building extensively, Oliver following her around like a puppy, though he would never allow himself to be called such. She complained about him hovering over her, but it held little bite to the scoldings she occasionally rallied off as she worked into the fallen evening that neared into midnight.

It wasn't until the later half of the week that Oliver took the opportunity to spend non-work hours with her. She had just finished with hacking into the buildings main frame to create her own security feed, linking the new system to her database at WatchTower. When she finished there was an accomplished grin on her expression, but Oliver wouldn't delude himself into thinking she'd take it easy now that she had completed her assignment. As expected, she came into the living room, stating that she was ready to start working on the physical locks of the loft.

"You sure you don't want to take a break?"

She shrugged, the accomplished light having suddenly diminished. "Better to finish everything now so I can get back to other business."

He frowned, but continued to try, "Come on, Chloe. You've been working yourself to the bone. You've done your job helping Clark. You're keeping watch over the city. Keeping watch over us heroes. To keep doing all of that, though, you need to take care of yourself."

For some reason his words put a bitter hardness to her eyes. A part of him wanted to take back whatever he had said that had caused her hurt, but he knew he couldn't. In that brief moment, though, Chloe forced the look away, making Oliver wonder if it had even been there in the first place. It was replaced by rolling eyes and a hesitant acceptance to his offer of a break. "What do you suggest I do?"

He could tell that she was only willing to do this now because she didn't want to talk about whatever had just crossed her mind, but he also wasn't going to let the opportunity go to waste. "Well, it seems like there's Fast and Furious on. What do you think?"

She scoffed in the pretense of good-natured disgust. "If that's all there is, I guess I can suffer through it. But you owe me."

Despite her reluctance, Oliver had high hopes that their time together now would be relaxing and he could be on his way to helping her through whatever she was struggling with. Unfortunately, she continued to do her best to not be swayed by his entire time the movie played, it was obvious her mind whirled. Frequently, he caught her checking up on something with her phone until he was finally fed up. "Hey, taking a break, remember?"

She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "Sorry. A lot's going on." He wanted to tell her again that do all that she thought she needed to do she needed to herself healthy, but before he did, she was standing, stating that Clark needed her.

Chloe didn't come back to the loft the for the next two days, claiming that she had a lot to do, needing to monitor the Kryptonians, but Oliver knew she could do all that with the technology at his place. She just didn't want to come back. That first day that she canceled on him, he thought about visiting WatchTower, but decided he could give her a day to deal with whatever was on her mind. The second day, he had his own hero work to focus on.

A work that ended with being aided by the Blur thing too, and at the end of the night he and Clark were finishing up cleaning up the fight that had ensured. Clark was about to zoom off, but Oliver stopped him. "What was that thing you needed from Chloe the other night?"

"What?"

"She was helping me with security, but then a little after midnight, she took off, saying you needed her."

As he had suspected, Clark frowned, stating that he hadn't asked for Chloe's help that late in a long time. She did all the work for him during the day, and even then it was because she brought it to his attention rather than him bringing it to her. Though Oliver had expected to hear that, it was still hard to understand. Why had Chloe been so eager to get out?

Oliver should have known that once he had shared that Chloe had been at his place that late in the night, Clark's protective streak would reign, and yet he was somehow unprepared for the hard, intense stare. "Why are you having Chloe set up your security?"

"Because she's the best...and because I sort of told Lois that Chloe worked for me."

Clark nodded. "Yea, she told me. She also said you were asking a lot about Chloe."

"I'm just a concerned friend."

To his surprise, Clark was understanding. "Well, I wish you luck." A small frown appeared, his expression momentarily morose. "I've been really worried about her, but she doesn't talk to me much about herself anymore. She's been distant." Oliver had seen the evidence of that and he wanted to inquire as to why she would behave like that to her best friend, but he couldn't voice his questions. It was hardly his place.

Except, in the days that followed, Chloe continued to be distant towards him (even more so than before), and he couldn't stand it. It was frustrating, not even being able to attempt to get closer to Chloe, to help her through all of this like she had helped him. He was tempted to go to Clark, as loath as he was to do so, that he may come to some understanding of Chloe's attitude of late. Before he came to that point, however, they stumbled upon the Justice Society of America.

For those too few days, Chloe was more alive than she had been since the destructive of Doomsday. Fighting for a team, even if it wasn't technically her own, she had only researched about a legend, she had a purpose. She had people - heroes - that counted on her, and she thrived under the pressure.

When the matter with the JSA had been settled, Oliver diligently climbed the stairs to the WatchTower, intent on taking her out. On the way up, he paused, his hand on the doorknob before turning. John Jones was inside talking to Chloe. Warning her, more specifically. He was talking about Dr. Fate, gently bringing up that she was close to follow the same path. Chloe denied it, of course, laughed glibly, but Oliver saw the truth of it. Things were even worse than he had originally thought. She wasn't just in pain over the loss of Jimmy and her team. It wasn't just that she was riddled with guilt or barely contained anger. Chloe was cutting herself off from the world completely, relying on her computers to be of assistance without having to actually be there.

"Dinner?" He suggested when he was sure the conversation was over, a grin on his face, hoping he wouldn't be turned down yet again.

She must have wanted to prove John wrong, because instead of the 'no' she had been giving the last couple of days, she smiled cheekily. "As long as you're paying Mr. Green." Success. At least until john invited himself along. Oliver glared, but the Martian Manhunter gave no mind.

Which meant John was there when Oliver suggested that the Justice League take a page out of the JSA's book and make WatchTower more of a home than just a base for information. Chloe smiled and nodded, but there was a deep sadness in her green eyes. As if she didn't believe that the idea was practical. It was John that voiced his agreement, saying he would appreciate a slight change of scenery when spending time with his new family, when he planned to do more of, subtly reassuring their resident sidekick.

Chloe parted ways with them after that, driving herself off back to the Talon, leaving Oliver with John, who didn't seem interested in leaving anytime soon. After a long, silent minute, the Martian advised. "If you want to break down her walls, you'll have to do much better than that."

"Reading my mind?"

"You're intentions are quite loud. I could hear them through the WatchTower's door." Generally, Oliver would have pushed aside the comment and the advice. Even in his improving character, he was a man not meant for sentiment. John didn't give the chance to react in any way. "I do wish you the best though." Then he was gone.

With the blessings of John, Clark, and Lois (he suspected the blessing anyway), Oliver went through his plans with a more determined attitude. Maybe not as optimistic as he would have liked, but he was putting on a good facade. Fake it till you make it, that's what he was intent to do until Chloe's stone walls would tumble and fall.

It was with this attitude, Oliver made his way into the WatchTower. The difference this time was that Chloe wasn't there when he arrived. Wondering where she had gone, he settled himself on the couch he had bought for the place with a glass of scotch, before gradually getting up to practice with his bow.

He lost track of time drinking and training, but he was well aware that it was very late by the time Chloe came back. He watched her from the corner of his eyes as she sat on the couch, sipping from his glass. Her demeanor was different. It was still depressed and certainly out of sorts, but something about her had changed.

Encouraged by whatever spark he was beginning to see, Oliver cajoled her her to step forward and practice with him. She gave a crooked smile, rolled her eyes, and came to stand by his his side. He was sure that something was happening between them, much more than there had ever been, when he passed the bow to her and watched her set the arrow in place.

His blood was high, buzzing in his veins. Gracefully, he reached around her to guide her properly, leaning against her to whisper, "The trick is to let go in between the heart beats." The heart beats that he could hear pounding loudly in both of their chests. She released the arrow, sending it straight into the bulls-eye. As it settled into the board, she bounced onto her toes to turn around. Green eyes were wide and alive, something Oliver hadn't seen in her for a long time.

Mentally, he didn't mean for what he did. The second she turned to face him with a light in her expression, all thought left him. He moved on pure instinct. With her still grinning in surprise and pride, he leaned down to touch her smiling lips with his. His arms reached around her entire body to embrace her tightly. The bow fell to the ground.

It was not thought, rational or otherwise, that led a simple kiss to becoming more passionate with every half second, and that ultimately led them back onto the couch, their clothes finding their way onto the floor, their hands caressing every part of each other's body that they could touch.

Surprisingly, or maybe not so much, Chloe was the one to take charge. Though it had been Oliver to initiate the kiss, Chloe seemed to have no qualms in taking advantage of the situation. She pressed into him with eagerness, taking what she wanted and reveling in their physical intimacy.

They fell asleep on that couch, exhausted from their activities, with a throw blanket barely covering them.

He woke up a few hours after drifting into consciousness. It took only a few seconds for Oliver to be aware enough to remember what had happened. A naked Chloe was lying mostly on top of him, providing him with warmth. Her breath cooled his chest and her heart beat sounded against him.

His first reaction was to mentally scold himself for allowing them to come to this. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. Of course he had thought sex would come into play at some point along their ups and downs. It was inevitable with the way Oliver worked. But it wasn't supposed to be like this - caught up in the heat of the moment. He had meant to heal her like she had healed him. Sex was suppose to come after that.

Still, as much as he regretted the order of these events, he couldn't bring himself to regret the action itself. Chloe had been amazing.


	4. Chapter 4

It wasn't long after he woke up that Chloe did the same. She pushed herself off his chest and smiled at him drowsily, a sleepy mist covering her eyes.

"Guess we should be glad that no other heroes decided to stop by, huh?" She wrapped the blanket around herself so that she could make some coffee, leaving Oliver without any covering until he collected his articles his clothings.

Once she had coffee in her and had put on her own clothes, Oliver came to the conclusion that he needed to be mature about this situation. "Look, Chloe, about last night…"

"It was fun," she grinned, cutting him off. "We should do it again sometime." She was now gathering her purse. "I got to meet Lois soon, and before that I'll need to change at home, so I'll see you later."

He watched her leave, not quite comprehending what had just happened, and unsure of how to proceed. It did become obvious, however, that Oliver hadn't been the only one who had enjoyed himself, and that Chloe hadn't been kidding when she said they should do it again. Now that something had happened between them, in the days that followed, she was not shy about taking what she wanted whenever they were alone.

So far it hadn't been more than heavy kissing and intimate touching since that first time together. Neither one was comfortable enough with the idea of being caught naked in the Watch Tower. They had gotten lucky once, but they weren't about to test it further.

Then, not long after, Chloe grinned like the Cheshire Cat while kissing him deeply, seated on his lap. "So, Mr. Green, your place or mine?"

Oliver was a weak man, especially when it came to beautiful women. Despite his intentions to do right by her and get things settled before getting drawn back into a mess of desire, he couldn't deny her. Anyway, he tried to justify while driving them to his place, this may not have been his original plan, but at least parts of the result were what he had wanted. Chloe was getting out of the Tower and away from her computers.

They fell into his bed, smiling and laughing, greedy hands over each other's body. Kisses were incessant as they moved from lips to the neck, down each other's chest, and further below.

"So," he finally found it in himself to bring up the situation while she lay exhausted in his bed, "what is this exactly?" He couldn't remember the last time he had been this anxious about sex. Sex had always been the easy part of his relationships.

"Fun," Chloe answered easily. "A way to let go of some stress and just relax." She seemed content enough to relax beside him.

That was what their conversation had been about, Oliver reminded himself. What reason was there for Chloe to think that this was anything other than him trying to engage her in a little bit of fun.

There must have been something in his expression, because Chloe suddenly became serious, leaning up on her elbow. "That's all this is. Nothing else Ollie. Seriously." Her soft, swollen lips were in a frown. "I can't handle anything other than 'no strings attached'." What else was Oliver supposed to say but agree?'

The days after that were complicated for Oliver. On one hand, he had succeeded in getting Chloe consistently away from her screens of information. He saw her every day, ending amazingly with her at his side without any clothes keeping them apart. On the other hand, this was not how he wanted this to happen. For all the teasing and smiles and life being brought back into both of them, the wonderful physical contact lacked any true intimacy.

At least that's how Chloe behaved. Since the evening that Oliver had inquired what they were doing. Chloe had made it clear that they were friends-with-benefits and nothing more. She was fun and carefree in their alone time, which made Oliver happy, but still concerned with the fact there was nothing serious between them. Nothing serious to fix and to mend.

And that's how the week went by: Chloe attempting to keep her deep, dark thoughts back in the Watch Tower, separate from the passionate moments in Oliver's loft.

But then there was the fiasco with the Kryptonite that Chloe had been gathering by skimming money from his company. A fact that was not brought to his attention by the scrappy sidekick, but by the cunning and devilish mouth of Tess Mercer. It was probably because of that, that lack of trust between them, the hard realization that this was indeed nothing serious, that caused him to lose control of his anger. He accused her of sleeping with him for his money, even though while saying it he knew it wasn't true.

Honestly, when he thought about it in retrospect, he understood why she had done what she did. And if he had cared about the money at all, he would have been angry before when he learned that her and Emil were using his funds to ungraded Watch Tower. He had long since given an open invitation to his team to use his Queen inheritance to whatever advantage they needed to do their hero work.

It was her secrecy that destroyed him. He was furious that after all this time and effort that he had put towards getting across Chloe's defenses equaled nothing. It didn't matter what they had been through, what they were doing, Chloe still saw herself as alone.

It was well after 24 hours since Tess had informed him of his money being stolen that he forced himself to get over his own issues. If Chloe still thought herself alone, then that meant he needed to do a better job with his self-appointed mission of saving her. It was the least he could do after all she had done for him.

He went to Watch Tower with the intention of apologizing for his careless insults, hoping to regain some level of connection. The moment he walked into the room, green eyes were on him, immediately standing so as to meet him halfway.

"Oliver," she was already saying before he could begin his planned apology, "I didn't mean for my actions to seem like I don't trust you or that I'm using you." She looked into his eyes with sincerity before glancing away shamefully. "It's just," she tried to explain, "I just…"

"You're just used to feeling like you have to do it alone," he finished for her. "I understand Chloe. I don't approve, but I don't understand." She nodded, clearly chided by his words and her own thoughts. "It's just, you should know that you don't have to do it by yourself anymore. You have a…" he was about to say team and Chloe knew it, but he couldn't bring himself to complete the sentence that way, "me."

It sounded sappy, certainly more cheesy than Chloe had been accepting as of late, but it had apparently been the right thing to say. A small, sideways smile appeared, along with a tiny shake of the head. "I'll try to remember that from now on."

In his plans to lure Chloe into a more comfortable relationship, to be more opened, the two found themselves driving to a B&B to get away from the chaos of the city and hero life.

"So Cyborg and Impulse are watching over Metropolis, huh?" He asked conversationally as Chloe hung up on Clark with a lighter air and tone (if not a little annoyance) than she had been using with him recently. "So you've been able to talk to them?" He made sure his own tone was light, unsure of how to go about talking of the team to Chloe.

For the most part, she kept her smiling expression, eyes gazing out the car window. "More so now since the incident with the JSA, though this is the first time they've been able to stop by the city." Oliver supposed that was an improvement with how things had been going, and he tried not to take it personally that he hadn't heard anything from them.

Oliver had thought that getting away for the weekend would be good for them, especially after the tension that had been created by the hidden piles of kryptonite. In truth, however, all it had managed to do was allow them to avoid their problems a little bit longer. And actually, it wasn't even that much longer until something decided to pop up and try to push them off balance.

He had thought that his and Chloe's pseudo peace had been disrupted by the unpredictable appearance of Clark and Lois. It was surprising, pleasantly so, when Chloe just sighed in exasperation and rolled her eyes.

No, it wasn't until Oliver had been stupid enough to take Clark's advice, doubting for moment their 'no strings attached' was what Chloe really wanted, and got her a present (however small and dorky it might have been). Apparently it was. In fact, Oliver was pretty sure by now, it was the way it would need to be for quite some time.

The Banshee had probably been a good thing actually. It had forced them to do something, to hash out matters that could no longer be avoided, where else they would have done little to move on.

"I think we went about this all wrong. I mean," he bumped into her shoulder playfully as they placed themselves on the railing of the Bed-and-Breakfast. "I get we're a 'no strings attached' kind of thing, but I think we may have forgotten a few key things in the process."

Chloe frowned, confused with that adorably pout and scrunched brows. "What do you mean?"

"Before we ever did this, we were a team." He looked her straight in the eyes, deadly serious. "Weren't we?"

The smile she gave was tiny, but sincere. "Of course."

"And friends," he pressed.

"And friends."

It was his turn to smile. "So that's the way things are going to be from now on. First, we're a team. Then friends. After all of that, then we can be whatever this is. Sound good?"

Her smile brightened. "Sounds good."


	5. Chapter 5

Things were going good, at least in regards to how they had been going before Chloe had stepped in the way of his self-destruction but that didn't mean he didn't occasionally slip back into dark thoughts. Thoughts too similar to the ones he had when standing on that bomb, ready to step off.

He tried to stay distracted with work and with Chloe, because he knew he couldn't go back to the man that had been so broken that he would accept being blown up. There was only so much distraction though, that was availed after a feisty blonde had already left his loft for her own place.

In the silence of his too spacious home, there was nothing to overcome the disappointment and hatred towards himself. He couldn't even allow himself to drown the thoughts with a good amount of alcohol, at least strong enough to know he needed to get up in the morning so things could continue to get better. He just sat on the couch, staring at the ceiling with little hope of getting to sleep any time soon. The lights were dim, and everything else had turned off. Depression seeped into the stuffy air of his secondary home.

Then his door was being opened, and a brighter light was flood into the living room. "Sorry, I think I left my pure. Or I better have, because if it's not here, then…"

He startled upright, but she hadn't given him enough time to shake the weariness and darkness from his demeanor.

Her eyes turned soft and full of concern as she stepped cautiously to stand at the side of the couch. "What's up Ollie?" She frowned prettily, "Don't tell me this is what you do whenever I leave for the night."

To decrease the tension that had begun to filter between them, he tried to lighten the mood, "Just missing your company."

Except, she didn't take it as a joke. She just sat beside him. "So what do you want to do? Watch a movie? I'll even let it be one of your lame action films that lack all reason."

"How dare you," he smiled outwardly and inwardly. "My movies aren't lame."

"Whatever."

So they ended up watching Oliver's choice of movie, making popcorn in the process. For every second he spent with Chloe beside him, those dark thoughts were farther and farther away. Barely getting started with the second movie, Oliver felt the weight of Chloe's head upon his shoulder. He smiled to himself at the contact, perfectly happy to let her rest against him.

He woke up the next morning lying on the couch, his feet propped up on the armrest, Chloe still securely snuggled at his, her head now resting comfortably on his chest. It reminded him of their first time together, connected intimately together on the sofa in Watch Tower, except this time they were fully clothed and there was no worry that someone would be storming in any minute.

When Chloe slowly roused herself awake, Oliver feared that their peace would be shattered. But it wasn't. She stretched like a lazy cat, his eyes on her form the entire time, then made herself at home in his kitchen to make coffee.

As she did that, he got up to join her, getting out his pan to make omelets to entice her to stay long enough for breakfast. Turns out, his efforts weren't actually needed. She made herself comfortable at his island, enjoying the coffee with a lazy smile, patiently waiting for him to take the seat across from her.

"So want to talk about last night?"

"What?" He looked at her with food in his mouth.

She rolled her eyes. "When I came back, you looked…I don't know...lost. Depressed."

"Just tired."

Her exasperation turned to frustration. "The truth, Ollie."

He stared at her hard, tempted to snap that she was hardly in a position to be making demands to hear how he was feeling, when she barely allowed herself to open up and be honest with anyone. Nothing came out. No matter how much he might think the thought, he couldn't bring himself to chastise her, too worried he would break the fragile bond between them.

Chloe refused to take his silence as any sport of answer. "I thought you said we were friends," she spoke in almost a whisper, "before the sex and everything. Friends help each other through moments like these. They talk to one another."

He smiled in an attempt to ease to tension. "If I talk, then you talk."

He thought saying so would cause Chloe to hesitate, but she nodded in agreement. "For every piece of information one of us gives that's personal, the other one has to give a piece of information that's of equal value."

It was so like Chloe to put everything in terms of information. Oliver felt a smile at the corner of his lips. "Sounds like a deal."

The smile she wore became sad, but determined. To his surprise, she went first. "I saw the video of you stepping off the pressure plate even though you still believed it to be connected to the bomb." He tried to interrupt her, but she had made her decision and wouldn't let him. "That why I did everything I could to bring you back from the edge." Her voice was becoming softer with each word, on the verge of showing remorse and and depressing guilt. "Because I couldn't just sit on the sidelines as you self-destructed...and all because of me."

"Chloe, my behavior wasn't your fault."

"It was," she was doing a good job at fighting back the tears, her green eyes wet, but never letting a drop fall. "Everything that happened with Doomsday was my fault, and because of my decision, the Justice League disbanded."

Since they were giving up equally valued information, Oliver confided, "They disbanded because of me. Because they found out that I murdered Lex and they knew they couldn't follow a leader that wasn't a hero. They left because they learned what I really was."

"And that's what had been on your mind last night?" She frowned at the truth of, so much heartache in her expression. "You still can't see that you're the hero you've always been?"

He sighed in acknowledgement, then raised his head to look her straight in the eyes. "But I'm getting there," he promised. "Everyday I remember the hero I wasn't to be and I'm wearing on getting there. With your help." She smiled.

After that, when time dimmed the uneasiness of their truth telling, he tried to test their new deal. During one of their meals, he stated almost casually, "I've loved two women in my past."

Chloe smirked knowingly. "Tess and Lois."

"And I loved them because of that spark that they had, that passion and snark, but in the end I think I was too infatuated with an unrealistic ideal."

"I get that. For the longest time I thought I was in love with Clark, and then there was Jimmy, but it was always unrealistic."

And that was how it was.

Chloe was like a small, wild animal. Corner her, and she would fight back. So Oliver was always careful to not press too hard. He'd give up information, and she'd tell him something she'd thought was of equal weight.

In this way, he learned many things about Chloe, like all the crazy teenage boys that made up her dating life back in Smallville. "I had a habit of attracting the psychotic and homicidal." And how her first kiss was with Clark in his barn on the first day they met. "So there wouldn't be any tension there after." He laughed at that.

When he told her about his group of friends from boarding school and the not-so-proud moments he had shared with them, she told him about her, Clark, and some guy named Pete, along with the strange story of how she had become like a sister to Lana Lang, Clark's high school sweetheart.

He confided in her about his decision to kill Lex for good, about how wrong he knew his decision was the second he went through with it. In return, she told him about how she had once given Lionel Luthor information on Clark before her discovery of his powers, sharing the disgust she had about herself for sinking so low in her petty sulking.

He learned that, for a time, she had been a metahuman with the power to heal, and what when Brainiac overpowered her, she had somehow lost that gift. "You sound like you miss it," he observed, not bothering to comment on why he hadn't been told about this when it was happening to her. She had that wistful tone to her voice even when describing the side effects.

She shrugged casually, but her voice gave her away. "I miss knowing I could save someone's life."

As the days continued and Chloe made no show of disregarding the deal of shared information, along with not displaying any signs of uncomfortableness, Oliver became more confident in their conversations.

He told her about all his side projects, about the details of training Mia, about some of the missions he had gone on without the team, and about some of the more exciting criminals he had chased down back home in Star City.

When he was done, Chloe paused only for half a breath before listing some of her own personal missions. She had recruited people with great skill to work under her (most prominently hacker that was spying for her in the Luther manor), her technical search for other secret vigilantes and metahumans and, with a show of slight shame, about how she had been tracking members of the team.

"You left bugs on us?" He clarified. Then he erupted in laughter, earning a confused eyebrow raise at his reaction. "I thought that had been Tess. I stormed into her place, threatening her."

Chloe laughed at that too, until she sobered in order to apologize. "I just wanted to watch over you guys to make sure the separation didn't kill anyone."

He understood. Back then when he had discovered the bug, he would have been furious at her, but he knew her well enough now to accept her reasoning. Anyways, in retrospect, her watching over them had saved him at least from getting himself killed.

"Well, hey," huge tried to dispel her guilt, "the team's back now, and you did good."

It didn't help. "They're kind of back, but it's still not like before. Half the time they're forgetting to even check in."

He learned in to kiss her, words of no use if she was going to be like this. She accepted the kiss gladly, her hands immediately reaching out to grab at his arms, moving to his sides, moving up his chest.

"You are amazing," he whispered, putting more strength into their contact, gradually pushing her into the soft mattress.

The descent made her laugh. "I bet you say that to all the girls."

He grinned into the kiss, his body completely covering hers. "Only when it's true."


	6. Chapter 6

It was a late evening at the WatchTower. Oliver was sitting beside Chloe and her computers as the team checked in before disconnecting. After everything that had happened, it was the greatest thing to hear the team on the other end of the line, communicating and working alongside one another as if they hadn't just spent more than half the year being at odds with each other. Things were finally getting back together. Granted, it may not have been his lead they were following anymore, but they were following protocol and watching each other's back.

Talking and working through the mess on her multiple screens, Chloe seemed content enough. She usually did when having a purpose before her, especially with the team back in action. That evening, though, something seemed off. Through the small grins she occasionally threw his way, there was a masked from in her eyes.

He wanted to ask directly what was wrong, but, though things between them had been improving, there was still a line he was afraid to cross. It was the fear that she would respond to his concern and unnecessary needling the same way she had responded to his attempt at a small, meaningless present.

They had made grand strides since that incident, sharing bits and pieces of personal information, but Oliver wasn't about to fool himself into thinking this was anything close to a normal relationship. Not to say, of course, that Oliver didn't view what they had as a relationship. It didn't matter what Chloe continued to believe about the two of them; Oliver valued it just as he would any other relationship, like what he had with Lois and Tess once upon a time. Being with Chloe was obviously different than being with them, but in many ways it was better. More difficult at times, but true. There was more depth to what they had.

Fortunately for him, he didn't have to go at war with himself in his decision to risk inquiring into her current state of mind. For the first time since the beginning of their deal was made, she was the one to offer her piece of information. With a deep burdensome sigh, she admitted, "Sometimes I don't think I can keep doing this."

He watched her worriedly. "What do you mean?" He didn't want to hear things like that coming from her. Chloe was always so resilient, even when stuck in darkness. It was too much hearing words of doubt and defeat in her voice.

There was a short pause in which she bit the edges of her bottom lip in thoughtful depression. "Everyone's out there doing something to be of use and I'm stuck in here."

"I'm stuck in here too," he tried to lighten the mood. The instant it was said, he regretted the attempt. Gently, he changed tactics. "Chloe, this team would be nothing without you." After all, if not for her, they would all still be aimless wannabe heroes, out there alone. Individually, Oliver and the others may have the strength and skill, but she was unquestionably the mind and heart.

"Maybe," but her whisper had none of the Sullivan confidence. "It's just...I locked myself away in this Tower after what happened to...Doomsday, keeping myself safe. Even knowing that everyone else was out there risking their lives."

His frown deepened. "No one thinks that about you." His tone was reassuring but stern, "because it's not true." There were plenty of times he could think of when Chloe, no power or training at her disposal, risked her life.

She seemed to know what he was thinking, for she replied, "I may have been brave at one time. The intrepid reporter," she scoffed bitterly at a title he knew she had earned when still in high school, now a term being used to describe her cousin. "But it's not true anymore." Her voice getting lower as she spoke, she continued, "Now I just sit here behind my computers while everyone else is in danger."

It was one of those times that Oliver wasn't sure how Chloe wanted or needed to be comforted, for she was the most complicated woman he had ever known, but he tried his best. He lay his hand gently on her shoulder. "With you doing what you do, trust me, we could never accomplish half that things we do. This team needs you. You are the glue that keeps us together and the brains behind the entire operation."

She rose an eyebrow at the sappy remark, but it must have been close to what she needed to hear a second time around because she didn't tease him about it like she generally would have.

After that that their evening went on as it normally did. Oliver Waite patiently as she turned everything off for the night, and they headed downstairs into Chloe's car where she drove them to his loft.

He had thought that since she had been in such a depressing mood before they had left, they would move around each other more gently and at a slower pace. It was obvious they would have sex; it was the reason Chloe almost always went home with him. With her mood being what it was though, he had imagined the sex would be...calmer than most of their nights together.

In retrospect, he shouldn't have been surprised that he was wrong. Chloe had proved enough times that though she was small and without intimidating strength, she thrived on taking control. The second the door had closed, Chloe was pushing him up against the wall, fast and nimble fingers doing their work of getting rid of his shirt and unbuckling his pants. Her kisses were eager and needy, pressing her breasts against him as her hands continued to work down. Oliver moaned indecently before using his own hands to divest her of her clothing.

She smiled into the kiss, always overjoyed when let her play the leader and simply followed her lead. When they were in nothing but their underwear, she was the one to maneuver them into the bedroom, guiding Oliver to the edge of the bed. He let out a soft laugh as fell backwards onto the mattress, admiring the return grin she presented him. Soft hands traveled down his chest to rest at his hip bones and tore away his boxers. She paused to stare at him, which heated him in all the right places. When he positioned his arms above his head, stretching himself to let her see at his best, she grinned wickedly and set to work to display all of herself to him. Nothing but delicious, hot skin touching, she straddled him, grinding seductively, kissing and sucking his neck.

And the rest of the night was pure bliss.

With nights like that, it was easy to forget that Chloe was having an internal crisis - she hid it so well - but he did what watch her closely and kept his affection at the highest she would allow. Only a few days after her admission had passed, and while he was still cautious when it came to her, he was grateful that things were getting better. Most specifically, and most graciously because of Chloe, how things with the team had finally gotten back to normal.

Because it was a definite comfort to know that when Checkmate kidnapped him, he had the rest of the heroes looking him. True, he had managed to free himself on his own, but it was nice to know Bart could have rushed in at any moment, that Roulette had been close at hand to give needed information, and that any number of his teammates would be tracking him down.

So when Chloe had suggested that he go civilian and let her go on the investigation to seek out Icicle, he hadn't worried. The team was officially back together now, and they would have her back.

That, and he had the hope that this would be a good thing for Chloe. Because she had been right about one thing that evening; she had been locking herself away in the WatchTower. Though still extensively useful, she had been keeping herself from the outside world. Not necessarily away from the danger like she had said, but the public in general. Being WatchTower these last few months had allowed her to be their eyes in the sky, giving little reason for her to move about on the streets.

So he figured that her wanting to be on the site of investigation was a positive. It must have been her attempt to return to the way she had been. Like the team, maybe she was finally getting better.

But then he had gone to the dinner where he had to interact with the investors and the business people, and most horridly, Tess. Then he had to find out that Tess, a woman he had once loved and trusted, had been the one responsible for his capture mere hours before. That in itself was a sickening thought. He had known she had lost her sense of self a long time ago, that her morals had been skewed, but it was something more to know exactly what type of people she was willing to work with to destroy others' lives. To know that, as much as he hated Lex, she may just as well be far worse.

And yet, that still hadn't been the worse of the day. The worse part was hearing her say, "Clark took off after I told him they were after something called WatchTower."

He couldn't even care what Tess might be thinking as he made his exit, the color from his face completely drained. Dread plummeted into the pit of his being. He had Bart on the phone as he raced downstairs. Without question, Impulse hurried Oliver to the tower, and watched anxiously as he tried to mimic Chloe's actions on the keys. In the back of his mind he thanked the universe that he had spent so many hours just watching her work that he knew how to locate a teammate's communication device and was able to pull a visual on the screen.

Behind him, Oliver could hear the sharp intake of breath from Bart as Chloe appeared on the computer screen, gagged, bound, and with a gun pointed at her head. Blood running cold, Oliver did what he could to get into the Castle's main frame. Seconds later, they were both able to breathe again at the sight of Clark coming in for the rescue.

"Thank God," Bart sighed in relief. "When did you learn to do that?"

"From Chloe."

"Oh, right."

With the fear and despair quieted, and knowing that Chloe would be spending some needed time with Clark, Oliver turned to leave. It wasn't until after he briefly explained the details to Bart and the rest of the team, and met with Tess to warn her away from the Justice League, that could satisfy himself by seeing her in person, safe and secure.

"Thanks for keeping my seat warm at WatchTower." She had the audacity to grin upon seeing him walking up to her.

Yet, despite the turmoil he had just gone through at the thought of her being harmed, he smiled back, "Well, you're welcome. Don't get used to it."

Getting out of WatchTower was perfectly fine he decided, if that meant Chloe was getting back to her roots, but he'd be damned if that meant she was doing something like this again. He didn't think he could handle it he had to go through this a second time.

"Oh, but your timing is so good. I mean, if you hadn't flipped back Castle's electric switch when you did."

"Chloe," he warned, because as much as he liked her smiling up at him, even now he couldn't bear the thought.

"But, uh, you know, I kind of liked being out in the field knowing I had a warm bed to come home to."

He could see that for the truth it was, though she kept the light, teasing tone in her voice. Maybe it was just for an instant, but he was sure that he could see the spark back in her eyes, shining just as bright as the first time he had met her in Clark's barn.

"That's very, very funny." He had to take a hold of her arm and bring her back so they were facing one another. All smiles and teases gone from his expression. "It scared the life out of me."

Her gaze as she studied him was serious, but then, after a thoughtful pause, smiled at the edges of her lips. "You better be careful, Ollie. I'm gonna start to think you're falling for me."

He didn't know what to say to that, but he was more than happy to accept her hand and be pulled along as they walked the rest of the way down the street.


	7. Chapter 7

Even with what happened with Checkmate, Oliver believed himself and Chloe to be relatively safe and secure. After all, as terrifying as that ordeal had been, they had gotten through it. Chloe had gotten through it, sly smiles and a spark back in her eyes that made Oliver start to believe they could truly be something more. There was open communication, smiles, and teases between them, all of which equaled to a pretty amazing partnership. They had their team back and they had each other.

So, when Oliver made his trip to Star City, it was with the peace of mind he was leaving behind a happy Chloe behind. Granted, he may have made her promise to text him constantly and to send him updates at least every two hours - something she laughed about but ultimately agreed on - but he still left with an optimistic attitude.

At first the texts were practically meaningless, but they were enough to make him smile. Apparently even a picture of her lunchtime coffee did something for him. Obviously he had it bad. But then in that afternoon of the second day the texts that came in were a little more worrisome.

'Clark knows about the hidden Kryptonite.'

'Tess is up to something again. I won't be able to text for awhile. Don't worry. I'll call when I'm done.' Which led to five anxiously hours until his phone was vibrating in his pocket. He quickly excused himself from his employees to hear her voice. All at once he felt himself as she explained what had happened and how everything had ended well enough.

Yet, despite the relief of hearing her light tone, a part of him wanted to rush back to Metropolis to be by her side. He didn't want her to in any sort of danger, and would prefer to be there to be able to get her out of it if needed. Thankfully, that instinct was stamped down. Rational thought made him realize that it wouldn't be an appreciated move.

He remembered the resistance and resentment of Lois when he had become over protective, and knew Chloe would react much in the same manner. In fact, she'd probably resent it more than her cousin did since she made it her mission to work alongside heroes. Chloe was always in some sort of danger. It wasn't necessarily a pleasant thought, but it was the truth, one that he knew he had to accept if he ever hoped for this thing between him and Chloe would last.

So he continued with the original plan of making his presence known in StarCity known, and then following a few leads with Cyborg, Impulse and Dinah. When he returned it was with the feeling of a job well done, a friendly goodbye with a team that trusted him once again, and into a comfortable bed with a passionate, warm woman.

A woman that gave him hope and a purpose, so much that when Clark came to inform him about Zod with the order that the war be fought as peacefully as possibly, Oliver went along with very little argument and quite a bit of optimism. Because as much as he wanted to go straight after Zod himself, Oliver went to the Luthor mansion with the intention of searching for information or confronting Tess.

And which is why when Zod did show up, he cursed to nothing in particular. This was not what had been planned.

Still, if the evil alien was here, Oliver figured the Green Arrow could do something. With confidence, precision, and calm, he aimed kryptonite arrow into Zod's thigh, dismissing the threat without completely destroying the man.

It was a testament to how much he had changed within such a short amount of time thanks to Chloe that he didn't the aim to kill, to end the danger then and there. Though he may not have made the promise he had to end this war peacefully to her, it was because of her that he wanted to make that promise to Clark.

…..

…..

…..

…..

…..

Oliver opened his eyes to the smell of burnt flesh, his own. Beside him he could hear the annoying beep of a heart monitor and the bustle of people out in the hall. Through the pain, he forced his head to turn where he had been so sure Chloe had been sitting, but instead he saw no one. It was a disheartening sight that made the physical pain that much worse.

The next time he opened his eyes it was to a diligent nurse. And the third time, and the fourth time, and the fifth time. No Chloe. Just pain.

But then, high on whatever pain medication they had him on, came relief. He could feel a warm hand in his, the pad of her thumb caressing the top of his hand in a sigh of comfort not only for him, but for herself as well.

Hoping it wasn't just his imagination, he slowly opened his eyes. Her head was bowed, close to the hand she was holding, her body bent forwards uncomfortably.

"And here I was thinking you abandoned me."

She jumped at the low sound of his voice, scared at first, but her expression swiftly morphed into relief and a wide, grateful smile. "I'm so sorry. The doctors told me you kept waking up but it seemed like we were always missing each other." She looked like she was on the verge of crying, or that she had just finished crying, and it both warmed him and broke him apart.

Chloe had been here with him, waiting for him to wake up. Probably in between trying to help Clark save the world.

He smiled as best as he could and squeezed her hand reassuringly. "Well," he sighed, "come on" he motioned to the slight empty space of the hospital bed. She rose an eyebrow in question. "You look horrible. I do believe you're in need of some beauty sleep."

The next day he convinced the doctors that he was at least well enough to stay in his own home - or maybe annoyed them enough. Chloe didn't seem too pleased with his decision, but she grudgingly guided him out of the hospital in the provided wheel car, pouting all the way to his loft. Once inside, he sighed and leaned down to kiss him gently, It was the most chaste moment they had had.

"I want nothing more than to stay," she whispered against his lips, almost as if it were a confession.

Giving up equal information, Oliver admitted, "And I want nothing more than that to happen too...but Clark needs you."

That was something Oliver had always known, and had always accepted, but he was just now realizing how hard that thought would be to live with. He would be held up here for at least 3 days according to Emil while his girlfriend continued to go out there saving the world. She couldn't stay here to comfort and to keep him company; she had a mission to complete.

Anyways, it was almost good enough that she always returned to him when it got dark outside, and kept in constant contact throughout the day. He'd hear his door being unlocked, and her petite feet glide across his loft in search for him. She'd greet him with a gentle kiss and they'd fall asleep talking to each other.

It was horrifyingly romantic, and just a bit cheesy, but to be honest Oliver always had been a romantic at heart. It was just that he tended to fall for women that were not.

He was never more grateful though, to get back into the field. Or rather, he supposed, back into WatchTower. Having Emil work wonders, he was in good enough shape to get back to work, specifically to get back to work with Chloe.

So what, that she still adamantly denied the truth behind what they were really had - coming up with some excuse about protecting WatchTower? He could see the truth in her expression even on screen. She understood his motives, and more importantly, she appreciated those motives.

What was really rewarding was how they moved around each other in sync, providing information to the entire team and giving orders. He could the knowing smiles of his teammates, even that of Hackman, as him and Chloe led everyone together.

It almost didn't matter that he was left with an ugly Z on his chest that he hoped would one day disappear, or that he had been on sick leave for the past few days while his team strategize on how to overpower super aliens with only one real weakness. He was here now. Beside Chloe. With the others at hand. He was feeling like he truly was his old self again. Though honestly, he didn't think he had ever felt this good.

And it was because of her. Chloe, who was taking charge like she had always been meant for this type of leadership position rather than the sidekick jobs that she took. Chloe, who smiled at him whoever their eyes met, almost as if he were her world too.

Chloe, who kept him company with her consistent teasing and laughter as he followed her instructions to bring WatchTower back online to its full potential.

And Chloe, who held her breath when they both knew he was being surrounded. Who would be the one to hear his last words, "Chloe, I love you."

"I love you too Ollie."


	8. Chapter 8

When Oliver found himself surrounded with little room to fight back, he was sure that he was done. So, when he opened his eyes to the dulling ache of his scarred chest, a headache, and a room obviously meant to hold a prisoner, he was very much surprised. Maybe a little less surprised when he became aware that he was his hands were tied behind his back, his legs tied to a chair, and a blindfold over his eyes. He became fully awake when a strong fist connected with his already bruised face.

Oliver spat out insults and jokes in pseudo confidence as this human man continued to beat him without reserve.

In return the man was spouting something about Kandorians and how all satellites had been shut down - the world, as he bitterly ranted, as blind as he was right now. All except, of course, the satellite that belonged to Oliver Queen.

This was insane. Here he was, trying to aid in the saving of the world against corrupted and misled aliens that were intent on making Earth their new home, and he was kept from doing so because he was too busy being tortured by some angry human with a grudge against masked vigilantes.

He was caught off guard, even more so than how he had been before, when the man returned. Not to continue the beating, but to release him.

With the ties cut, Oliver was roughly manhandled to his feet, the blindfold replaced for a sack, and pushed into the back of an expensive car. Confused and with an unsettled feeling sinking into his gut - more so than when he was tied and beaten - he remained silent during the ride. He didn't even have the energy to joke away his unease.

The water on the road as he was pulled from the car froze his feet, making them numb as he stumbled forwards. A smaller body collided into him for just a moment before he was gripped by the elbow and pulled away into another car.

Upon being unceremoniously left on the outskirts of the city with no way to chase the culprits or to get back to WatchTower quickly, Oliver did his best to run through the vacated streets until he found himself on a main road.

Around him the world seemed secure and none the wiser about what may have occurred, so Oliver had to assume that Clark had been successful in his mission. And that should have brought him some relief, but there were a million thoughts running through his mind right now and none of them were good. He had to get to WatchTower. He had to see Chloe. He had to prove to himself that the sinking feeling in his gut was wrong, and that this had just been another day on the job.

But of course he wasn't wrong.

"Chloe's gone."

Tess stood on the main floor of the Watch Tower, no emotion in her expression. "Well, you've been with her for five months, right? Sounds like things are right on schedule."

"No, it's not like that. She just disappeared. No warning, no phone call, nothing." And he knew why, but he still couldn't accept it. Still hated that something like this would happen to him. To her.

Tess didn't understand though. Of course she didn't. Why would she? She just made her dry remarks, not bothering to care why Oliver was reacting the way that he was.

He was threatened to yell at her for her insensitivity, to threaten her to help him find Chloe, to accuse her for her part in all of her, but he managed to somehow reign in his rage. "If you think I'm going to sit here waiting for my girlfriend to come back like Clark is doing, you don't know me very well at all."

Tess still had no emotional response to what he was saying. Not that he had expected he to. Instead, she had the gall to comment Clark's 'respect' for Lois.

"Maybe that's because Lois hasn't completely disappeared." With barely contained resentment and anger, he stated, "There's no digital record of Chloe Sullivan anywhere." It was as if she had never even existed.

That finally garnered a response, an almost respectful awe at the idea that Oliver despised because it implied what he couldn't accept and couldn't live with the thought of. "The only one who can erase Chloe is Chloe."

No.

He flung the printed email at her, another hated aspect that he had had to return to when arriving at what was supposed to be a safe haven for heroes.

"Oliver, I never thought I'd have to tell you how I feel about us because the smile on my lips when I looked at you pretty much said it all. But now that you won't be seeing it anymore I'll have to tell you." Tess read it out loud, and Oliver hated her for it. He was hating a lot of things right now. "I've never loved anyone the way I've loved you. And I never will again. You will always be my brightest star. My knight in shining leather, my hero."

She looked up from the letter and Oliver hated the soft pity he saw in her eyes.

No.

He couldn't accept this. Couldn't believe it. Chloe wouldn't choose this way out. She wouldn't abandon him, not intentional. She had to know that for this past year she had been his lifeline. Even when he had convinced himself that all he was trying to do was save her from self-destruction, she had still been his saving grace.

If Chloe was gone, had purposefully left him, what was he supposed to do? If this had been her plan, how was he supposed to get her back? How was he supposed to save her?

Tess said that all he had to do was trust her, but who was Tess to give him relationship advice.

So instead, he went hunting for clues and for those at fault. He ransacked the WatchTower, the Talon, his loft, but all he found was a photo that broke his heart and an obnoxious blonde that didn't belong there. He ended up in the spot where he had been tied to a chair and tortured. There, he finally found something.

All the rage he had been trying to control and keep in was released as he pounded the man that had beaten him. That had, the man laughed, tortured Chloe. She was dead, she declared, but Oliver knew better than to take his word as fact.

No, he knew, she was alive. He found the antidote to the cyanide in her belongings, which meant Chloe was alive and free.

Free, as it turned out, to get away from him.

Clark found him on the steps of Watch Tower's podium as the darkness and rain fell upon the city outside. Which is how he learned about Chloe taking the helmet of Dr. Fate in her attempt to find and rescue him.

Clark gave him the information calmly as if it explained everything and made it all okay. But how could any of this be okay? How could Clark, her best friend since childhood, believe this was okay? Chloe was gone. How could anything ever be okay again?

Clark kept talking about destiny and needing to trust those that they loved. Oliver knew he was thinking of himself and Lois, that Clark did in fact understand on some level, but it didn't matter. Not now.

All Oliver could think was how much he had failed Chloe. That out of all the strangers he had saved in his years playing Green Arrow, he hadn't been able to save her. The woman who had rescued him from his own darkness and had earned her right to mean everything to him.


	9. Chapter 9

It was impossible to fall asleep. He kept imagining the harm Chloe had allowed herself to come to, fearing the worst and hating himself for not being able to do anything about it. He would have gone off on his own to be the Green Arrow (because even if he failed at being the hero Chloe had needed, he still felt the need to be the hero she had wanted him to be), but Clark had been adamant about him going home and getting much needed rest. For once, Oliver listened to Clark's reason.

He was just about to pour himself a generous amount of scotch or whiskey, or whatever it was he had stashed away in the bottom of his kitchen drawers, and drink himself to sleep when he heard sounds just outside his door. With a glance to the door, and then a glance to where the alcohol was waiting for him, he made the deliberate decision to ignore it. Against his wishes, however, the next thing he was aware of was a breeze pass by him and then suddenly the door was being opened from the inside. Victor and Bart stared at him, a case of beer under their arms.

Both of them looked at him with the same respect they had had when they first joined the team, but this time there was a sadness they couldn't keep from their eyes. Bart especially had the obvious signs of crying still on his face.

They didn't mention Chloe as they helped themselves to Oliver's game station that was stored underneath the TV, and took their place in their respective spots on his couch. When Oliver sat down among them, he was immediately handed a controller and a beer.

Oliver appreciated the camaraderie and he did his best to accept their brotherly comfort, but in truth it did very little to fix his depression, and the guilt, and the darkness that had settled within him.

Hours into the night, Bart crashed on the couch, Victor turned to him solemnly. The volume on the TV was practically silent and the empty beer bottles lined the glass coffee table. "She'll be back."

"You're right." Oliver did his best to sound positive. "She loves the team too much to leave forever."

Victor frowned. The lack of confidence in the other's voice had been all too obvious. "She loves you too much to leave forever." It was stated as if that fact alone would make things bearable, but it didn't. It made it worse.

Because the fact was, Oliver had spent months wondering if Chloe felt the same way about him as he did about her, hoping they were more than just a 'no-strings-attached" kind of deal. But in the past few weeks, there had been no need to wonder. It was obvious. Chloe had fallen for him. At the time, knowing that Chloe loved him with just as much fever as he loved her had been enough, even as she continued to vehemently declare that they weren't in a relationship.

But to have heard the words and seen the letter...it was now too much. Too much pain. Too much guilt. Knowing Chloe hadn't just done this because of the love for her team, but because of her love for him only, made it that much more horrible. What had loving him gotten her?

He couldn't stop thinking about how he had been saved because of her. In his darkest moment, she had been his lighthouse and had led him back to where he needed to be. All he had wanted to was to return the favor. But instead of being her savior, he had been her downfall.

The next day Oliver dragged himself to Watch Tower, ignoring the headache that had persisted into the morning. He positioned himself in front of Chloe's computers, going through the data that she had collected and had programmed to continue to collect as if it would solve anything.

That was how Jones found him - obsessed with looking for something he knew he wouldn't find. The Martian quietly made his way up the stairs so that he stood next to Oliver, peering over his head to the screens. "You here to try your hand at comforting me too?" The question came out harsher than he had intended.

Him and Jones had always gotten along, but Oliver never considered themselves close. Unlike Bart and Victor, Jones had only joined the Justice League because of Chloe. Granted, Jones had once included Oliver into his list of new family, but it was hard for Oliver to see the relationship as anything as close to what he had with the original members.

Jones said nothing. He just stared with an understanding gaze. Oliver redirected his attention back to the screens, calming himself, willing himself to accept whatever comfort anybody would provide. He knew it wouldn't necessarily help, but to turn them away would mean to go back to the way he had been before Chloe's intervention, and he couldn't do that. He couldn't betray her like that.

Many silent moment later, Oliver stated lowly, "She used Dr. Fate's helmet to find me."

"It had crossed my mind that was how she had done so."

"She risked her sanity for me." Oliver wasn't sure why he was divulging his thoughts. Maybe it was because it had been Jones who had been able to see Chloe's decent before anyone else, and had been able to the extent of that descent. "Out of everything that she could have done, why do something that would risk her sanity?"

"What else could she have done?"

"Not that!"

She could have chosen not to sacrifice herself, to not give up the one thing she had been terrified of losing. After seeing her mom, Chloe had once admitted in passing, she had feared the same would happen to her. Especially after Brainiac and Doomsday she had worried that she was beginning to lose herself.

After that, the agonizing hours continued to go by.

Oliver couldn't take it. Everyone around him was acting like Chloe's disappearance meant nothing. Even as they tried to comfort him he could tell they respected her decision.

"She'll be okay," Victor promised.

"Strongest and definitely the smartest woman I know," Bart reasoned.

"It was her decision," Jones stated later.

Even Arthur got a hold of him when he found out what had happened after the war against Zod, saying something along the lines of trusting those you loved.

Everyone seemed to be under the impression that just because was most likely safe that it meant everything was okay. They didn't realize (not even Clark) what exactly she had sacrificed to save him.

"It's just the way she is," Victor explained.

"She'd do anything for her friends," Bart told him.

"Chloe made her choice." Jones tried to make him understand.

He purposefully stayed away from Clark after he had informed Oliver about Dr. Fate's helmet, not wanting to hear any more of his platitudes. Thankfully, for the his part, Clark didn't seek him out. Like the rest, it would seem, that as long as Chloe was safe, her disappearance didn't seem to bother him.

Or maybe it did, and the reasons Clark didn't try to comfort Oliver was because he blamed Oliver for his best friend leaving.

Then, there was Lois. Lois, who didn't try to comfort him because didn't know the truth. It was her visit that finally broke him past the point of mending.

She informed him of the proof that Gordon had, and consequently the danger she had put herself in to get rid of it. Hearing her story, he was done. It was final.

Never again would someone sacrifice themselves to protect his secret. Never again would someone have to risk themselves to save him from himself.

So he told the world - or at least America - who he was, and he prepared himself for the onslaught.


	10. Chapter 10

He had to keep himself focused on the reporters that swarmed him, rather than see Lois standing off to the side near the back, disappointment and disapproval clear in her entire demeanor. He couldn't' allow himself to be dissuaded from telling the truth. His secret had proven itself time and time again to be too dangerous of a burden for others to keep, and he would no longer allow that to happen.

To be honest though, Oliver had expected the revelation to be more problematic than it ended up being. He had decided this course of action because he hadn't wanted others to pay the price of sharing his burden any more, fully prepared of taking whatever the price was for himself.

Instead, in the days that followed, Oliver felt more like he was being rewarded. As if the secret of being the Green Arrow had truly been iron chains weighing him down, suddenly those chains had been unshackled.

His days were now full of people stopping him on the streets and in restraints to thank him for his heroics. There had been one in particular that cried as she hugged him, telling him how he had saved her and her young son two years ago. Generous gift baskets were being dropped off at his loft, both in Metropolis and in the Star City. His assistant from Queen Industries, who had never much acted as if she liked him, called him with adoration in his tone about all the gifts that were being delivered to him. "You can keep them," he told her, receiving a squeal he hadn't thought her possible of.

There were even articles being written about him that praised his name. It was nice to read the newspapers and magazines and not see people bashing his work ethic in concern to his business or question the morality of the leather clad vigilante.

His team, who didn't necessarily agree with what he had done, supported his decision. Victor had patted his shoulder in a brotherly manner with the simple comment, "Whatever you got to do." Bart pretended nothing had changed, except that Oliver now had countless fruit baskets and a variety of chocolates to eat from when he stopped by.

Even Clark, who did give the customary lecture on what he thought about Oliver's rash decision, dropped the subject after the initial conversation. After that, if Oliver didn't know any better, it almost seemed like Clark actually respected him more. He was certainly coming by more often, and not always because of the job. There were even a few times that Clark came to him for advice.

Oliver listened as Clark shared his anxiety about telling Lois the truth, fearing that once she knew she'd dump him just as she had dumped Oliver when she realized he was the Green Arrow long ago. He couldn't help but notice that this was the type of conversation that Clark would usually have with Chloe. There was an almost humbling and warming feeling at the thought that Clark trusted him enough to place him in this new level of friendship, while simultaneously being depressing and painful at the idea that he was somehow replacing Chloe. An impossible thing to do.

Tell her, had been Oliver's advice. Because "living without love isn't living. It's just existing."

Surprisingly, his advice was taken into account. Not long after, Lois was socking him in the shoulder for his part in the secrecy. "Not that I don't understand, of course. Just...ugh." She smiled widely as she playfully punched him again.

And Clark wasn't the only person whose relationship with him seemed to have unreasonably become closer, whether Oliver wanted it to be that way or not. There was Tess too.

It was with agitation that he dealt with her at the museum, verbally combating against her when he'd prefer to be left alone to distract him with the Iris project. Her comments about the similarity between Iris's story and his and Chloe's was unnecessary, and her remarks about how Chloe would no longer love the man that he had become were uncalled for.

Yet, for all the resentment and rage he held towards her, he put up with her presence, and for some reason she kept coming around.

It was with grudging reluctance that he accepted her help in the mission to save Lois. And it was in bitter defeat that he gave her the keys to WatchTower, telling her that she could earn her place on the team. That last part he blamed on Clark, but he managed to not hold it against him.

For as close as they were becoming - against Oliver's will - it was difficult to see her move into Chloe's place. Suddenly the WatchTower had transformed. Chloe's mind and influence could still be seen in the background, and her spirit could certainly still be felt, but it was no longer her's.

He responded to this loss by acting out against the one person on the team he had absolutely no qualms in picking a fight with in his moments of despair. For her part, Tess accepted the scatching remarks with only minimal sarcasm of her own (minimal for her at least).

I know it's hard to work with Tess right now," Clark tried to tell him as they came back from their encounter with Flagg. Wanting to give the General time to speak with his daughters, he was accompanying Oliver back to WatchTower. "But you should give her a chance."

Oliver scoffed. "I thought having her on the team was giving her a chance."

"You know that's not enough."

He tried to ignore Clark and his ideals of forgiveness. With everything he was dealing with, he had thought forgiveness could be pushed aside for the time being. Other than that one aspect, Oliver thought he was doing fairly well. Considering his usual path after heartbreak, he was actually doing great for himself. It was unreasonable to expect him to be perfect.

Clark didn't seemed to care about his inner monologue. "She isn't replacing Chloe." There was an emotion in his voice that gave way to the fact Chloe's leaving had a stronger effect on him than he had been letting on. It was the tone along that forced Oliver to listen to what he had to say. "No one could ever replace her. Tess is just trying to help. She needs to help so that she can try to atone for the things she had done." Which Oliver understood; he just didn't want to ponder it any further. "And in doing so, she's carrying on what Chloe found so important."

The WatchTower, Oliver thought. Chloe had made the home that Jimmy had given her and made it a safe haven for heroes, because what was important to Chloe was to protect those that protected others.

It was with Clark's words that Oliver returned to WatchTower with a truce for the woman sitting behind the desk that lay just beneath the stained glass window.

And it was with the thought of Chloe and all that she had worked towards, that he informed Tess that he couldn't come back.


	11. Chapter 11

Forcing himself away from Watchtower was difficult. Of course it was. It had been, for all intent and purposes, Chloe's home, and with her there it had been begun to be a home away from home for him too.

It was made even more difficult by the fact that the VRA had successfully frightened many of the heroes of the Justice League into further secrecy. So, with Oliver having no secret left to hide, his team had become incognito. They had to. It was the only way for them to ensure their safety against a government that had turned against them, and still be able to protect those they had sworn to protect.

Though, it wouldn't be fair to say that the entire team had gone incognito. Tess, newly instated member as she was, still communicated with him. Daily, in fact. To the point that it was, frankly, quite annoying. "You don't have to call me everyday, you know? I do in fact, get tired of hearing your voice."

"I figure someone has to make sure you stay in the loop, seeing as everyone is avoiding you due to your colossal mistake of revealing your secret identity."

He gritted his teeth. "Yea...well, you don't."

"Shut up. I'll call you tomorrow about any updates."

Clark, too, was surprisingly communicative. More so than usual, actually. Like Tess, he seemed to think it necessary to call and see Oliver at least once a day. Usually their conversations revolved around the crisis with the VRA and the upcoming registration act, as well as the trouble that the "Freedom Fighters" that Flagg continued to gather, ensuring that their would soon be a war between the two ideals. Still, though their conversations were mostly about business, it was a lot more than what they usually had.

Now, Oliver had been referring to Clark as a friend pretty much since the time the Blur had decided to stop the Green Arrow in his tracks that night years ago. That had also been around the time Oliver had come to respect the small town farm boy, admiring his morality as well as his power and strength.

Amidst the friendship founded in being vigilantes occasionally protecting the same turf and respect, however, was a strong sense of annoyance, a bit of resentment, and a lack of understanding on both of their parts. It cultivated a relationship that was strained at best and explosive at worst.

Lately that had changed. Clark was being extremely supportive in pretty much everything. He didn't pass judgment on Oliver for being outed and listened sincerely to his ideas and advice on what needed to be done next concerning the VRA and the Freedom Fighters. It was the first time that Clark had truly taken Oliver's thoughts on such matters seriously and without questioning his ethics. For once, it appeared that they shared an understanding and level of respect, and Oliver felt that he was finally being seen as an equal rather than some foolish hero that needed to be babysat so as to not disrupt the morality of their world.

That respect was proven when the registration act was finally presented and they discussed the need for one hero to step forward as to see what the rest would be getting into. It was easier than it usually would have been to convince Clark away from the path of self-sacrifice and explain the rationality behind Oliver himself putting down his name.

Then Oliver had gotten into trouble yet again by agreeing to sign up for vigilante registration act. It was a mess, as well as more troubling than they had originally pictured. Prisons beneath the sea, all just to keep the world safe from heroes.

If ever there was a time that the protectors of the world needed to be protected themselves, this would be it.

It was a sentiment that Mera, AC's wife, fully understood, and it was because of her that Oliver and AC had been saved from the prisons that had once been erected by Lex and was now being utilized by the government.

"We need to fight back." She stated with passion. Oliver could see what AC saw in her that drew him into her sphere and accepted her as a teammate, an equal in his crime fighting that he had never quite gotten the handle of when working with those of the Justice League. "We need to protect ourselves so that we can continue to protect others."

"I agree," Oliver was surprised to hear Clark respond. "But to do that, we need to be a team. All of course." He tried to hide the grin that was threatening to break through at the thought of Clark Kent, the lone hero that had repeatedly refused to join the Justice League until Chloe enticed him with her knowledge and access that came from being WatchTower, stating that the only way to survive this was to work together. "I know the government is against us, but we shouldn't be distancing ourselves from each other. If anything, we should be communicating more."

Which was something that Clark was more than willing to put into action himself. More than ever he was involved in the WatchTower and the Justice League, and the conversations with Oliver that he felt obligated to have daily became more than just about business. They even talked about their "normal" lives. Well, Clark did, anyways. Oliver mainly listened with the occasional sarcastic retort.

"And how are you doing?" Clark tried to ask casually when after a few days he realized that Oliver wasn't sharing as equally as him.

"Fine." He was all for Clark being comfortable enough displaying his heart, but he didn't think he was anywhere near that level of openness yet.

If he was honest with himself - and he had been trying not be lately - he'd admit that there was only one person that he had ever allowed to see him completely bare. Not just the man that had walked around after Doomsday, but deeper than that. The real him. Past the title, the glamour, the mask, the money, the cockiness, and the bullshit. Even before he loved her, Chloe had been the one to know everything about him, even his darkest secrets. She was the one to recognize the shadows behind the smiles and laughs. She had been the one to call him out on his murder of Lex Luthor and framing the Toy Maker for his sins. She was the one who understood who he loved, what he fought for, and what he feared. It was one of the many reasons why it had to be her to save him from himself.

He was deep in thought that he hadn't noticed Clark staring at him. "What?"

It was with a slight frown that the alien said softly, "It's okay if you're not." Before Oliver could think of what to say, Clark continued, "I miss her too."

Irrational anger spiked through Oliver's blood. "Well, no offense, but you certainly don't act like it."

He regretted the accusation immediately as Clark's expression dropped, briefly lowering his gaze in shame and sadness. "It's been hard," he said evenly, "She's my best friend. I love her too." The admission soothed what little anger still resided. Oliver wasn't even the chance to anything, though, before Clark was telling him about his high school reunion. "There was a part of me that was so sure that she was going to show up, and it...it hurt that she didn't."

Oliver listened, just as he had been listening to Clark share his thoughts and doubts about everything else.

"A part of me wants to be mad at her for leaving," Clark was confessing. Oliver sympathized with the feeling. There was a part of him that wanted to blame her too, but then he thought about all that she had given up and how, in all honesty, he probably didn't deserve her. "But then I remember that I have no right to justice her about her leaving. Not after everything I've done to her."

Suddenly Oliver realized what had been going on, not just between the two of them, but Clark as an individual. One, just like Oliver, Clark felt guilt about Chloe's decision. Maybe not for the same reasons as Oliver, but the guilt was still very much present, weighing down on the man.

"I was completely alone," Chloe had told him once after he had admitted the reason why Doomsday had pushed him over the edge.

He had frowned and been anxious to know, "I thought Clark…"

"He was being Kal-El," her tone had been bitter, "and he couldn't allow for human distraction." Her expression had become dark and depressed. "Not until Lois came back anyways."

So Oliver understood what Clark meant that it wasn't his place to judge her.

Second, and the part he really shouldn't have mistaken, was that he missed her more than he was allowed to show and more than he would ever be able to say. Because Chloe had been his best friend, as well as sidekick and eyes in the sky.

With that understanding between them, Oliver saw their friendship for what it was. An actual friendship.

Yet despite their strengthened friendship, Oliver was still surprised when Clark asked him to be his best man. "You're the one that stands there on the worst days of my life. I want you to be there on the beast one too." Obviously, Oliver couldn't say no.


	12. Chapter 12

It was a bittersweet moment watching Clark and Lois enjoy their engagement party, mingling with the half of the team that were able to risk coming. On one hand, he was of course happy for his friends, and he wished them nothing but a happy ever after. But it was like the Hawkman said, times like these made the missed her that much harder.

Still, he smiled and he joked with those who were able to make it. He was especially pleased to stand next to Clark in their new element of friendship and as the role of best man. When Lois came around, he elbowed her conspiratory, reminding her of all the times in the past, back when Lois claimed she thought of nothing romantic when it came to Smallville, that they all hinted her that there was more. There was food and there was laughter, and it was, all in all, a good time.

Not that any of them should have expected that it could last. The government that had turned against them made their move. The people that were so easily influenced by what the media shouted out in rage, rallied together in mob mentality.

It was with this grim knowledge of how things were now that Oliver trudged through the shadows of the city, not knowing what to do about himself. Too many things had changed in too little of a time. One minute he was expertly keeping his secret, and the next, the world had access to who he really was, all because he had foolishly let his secret go, too exhausted from loss to kept it any longer. One moment, with this secret revealed, the city is praising his name and he's being hailed a hero. Then all of a sudden he's a territorial, being jumped by supposedly innocent bystanders.

Which all equaled to the inevitable. The shutting down of Watch Tower.

Though Oliver had once made peace with the idea of leaving the Watch Tower behind, he never actually imagined a time it would be completely unplugged. Not just screwed around with by their enemies, but shut down by them. He acted as if it wasn't physically painful watching Clark turned off the switch, but it was.

And with the unplugging of Watch Tower came the declaration that they wouldn't just be cautious about how they moved, but that they would shut down their heroics as well. At least for the time being.

Except, that last part wasn't something most of them could do. Especially not him. Or Clark. Or, heck, even Hawkman.

"You sure you should be here?" The gruff hawk questioned when Clark left to save Lois, leaving the two of them alone in a place where they shouldn't have been in the first place.

Oliver scoffed. "About as sure as you are about here."

"Yes well, I'm not the one who got ganged up on by mere humans just hours ago." The mockery was clear. After all, Oliver too, was a mere human.

It was a mocking comment that deserved another bitter scoff. "May be just a mere human, but I still have responsibilities that you do. To be a hero."

The look he received was hard and judging, but there was also something there that couldn't exactly be deciphered. "I may have been teasing you about your lack of powers, but I wasn't disclaiming you as a hero."

It was the second time in their acquaintance that Carter had said something reasonably nice. Which, of course. Because that was how life was now. Giving one positive, and then suddenly changing it so it was a hundred times worse.

The loss - the permanent loss of someone he had always been at odds with with the exception of the past two meetings - was all consuming. All Oliver was even capable of doing was walking alongside the rest of the team, overwhelmed with resentment, anger, and a good amount of guilt.

Resentment at the fact that this loss would occur just as he was beginning to actually like the Hawkman. For in the year or so they had been fighting in the same circles, they had always found themselves at opposite ends of one another. Even when they were dealing with Zod, Oliver was acutely aware that it wasn't his orders that Carter had listened to without question, but rather he had been following the orders of Chloe. They couldn't even in the same room without making hints at one another, snarling and scathing. It wasn't until recently that something had shifted in their dynamics.

Anger because of what the world, more specifically their country, had come to. Destroying their heroes. Not caring at the loss of a life, a life that had spent multiple lifetimes fighting for what was right.

And guilt because, hidden in the dark abyss of his being, he knew that if it had been any of the other members of the team (Clark, Victor, Bart, Jones, AC, hell even Black Canary) the ache and loss would be so much more. Gritting his teeth at the self loathing that that guilt made more palpable, Oliver forced himself forward with Lois as an anchor beside him.

He grimly set his edge of the slab that held Carter's dead body and respected the man in revered silence.

Then, all of a sudden, he was blinded and his body was falling to the dusty ground. Darkness surrounded him. All else had vanished.

When the darkness began to fade his heavy eyelids were able to open slowly to a state, dim light. His body was sluggish and his mind buzzing, and though the darkness and clearing he was still lost. It was in that in between state that a face appeared above. Her light eyebrows were cinched together like she was trying to solve a complex problem.

Green eyes were like gems, in that they were beautiful but also jaded.

"Chloe," he whispered, feeling the pinpricks of stinging tears in his eyes. As soon as her name escaped his lips, the darkness was completely gone and the reality of his physical state set in. He couldn't breathe. There were tubes up his nostrils and wires attached to his arms and chest. His skin was cold and numb. Above him, Chloe frowned. Then she was turning to someone else in the poorly lit room, saying something that Oliver couldn't understand. Then he was out again.

During the indeterminate time that he was under, there moments of tormenting darkness and then moments of confusing sightings of Chloe hovering over him like he was a lab rat. In those moments of darkness he had visions of a swarm of bystanders attacking him, of Slade smirking as he was being dropped into a tub of ice water, of Clark warning them of the Darkness that would take over their soul, of Carter's lifeless body.

In the moments of awareness, all he could see was Chloe and the fluorescent light that hung above them. He tried to speak to her, but found that he couldn't gather his voice to do so. Which left him motionless and voiceless as Chloe frowned and scrunched her expression in thought and gave harsh orders to whoever was around her.

After so many times of waking up to see this strange Chloe above him, all he wanted to do was remain in the darkness. Because as bad as all of it was, it had happened. Those visions, as horrifying as they were, were memories not dark promises of what was to come. Not like the visions of Chloe.

The Chloe was stared at him with a hardness in her eyes and thinned lips as she maneuvered about him meticulously. He didn't know what was doing, but it bode well. And he couldn't keep seeing her like that, doubting her intentions, scared because of her. So there came a point where he just kept his eyes shut and let the darkness seep in.


	13. Chapter 13

With a drugged addled brain, Oliver slowly opened his eyes. Through the blur, he realized that he was in his loft, safe and secure. Blinking away the fuzziness of his mind, he forced himself to recall how he had ended up back here, but all he could remember was Carter's funeral and the strange flashes of Chloe.

It didn't take him very long to push through the haze and start demanding answers. The problem was, that as he went about trying to tough-guy his way through, he found that he wasn't all that tough. Whatever had been happening to him while being under had ripped him of his finely turned skills. All that training that he had put himself through since the island was gone.

He was easily overtaken by the strange men that suddenly appeared around him, and he was dragged to a holding facility, thrown in a cell like he was dangerously insane.

And maybe he was insane. Because he was still having flashes of Chloe and of a lab. Not just when he closed his eyes, but now they were coming even as he paced the padded room.

Unable to do much more, he yelled and screamed at the glazed over men and women that marched down the corridor every now and then. He yelled until the flashes stopped and there was a respite from the images of Chloe.

"They did something to us." Oliver seethed when Clark found him, powerless to break him out. "They're trying to make me think that Chloe did this to us."

He wanted Clark to immediately state otherwise, to confidently assure him that Chloe would never do something like this. Oliver needed that validation. But it never came. Instead, Clark's eyes dimmed and all there was was the doubt and the sadness that he believed whatever flashes he was seeing.

Oliver didn't bother yelling after that.

Then, just to prove that he was truly going insane, Chloe materialized from the white, padded wall, wearing a white business suit and giving off the complete matrix vibe. He stared at her, caught between wanting her to be real and another part hoping he was losing his mind.

There was a glow around her, particularly strong around the tips of her blonde hair. Her thin lips pressed into a tiny smile, the one Oliver knew to mean that she was happy to see him, that she had a plan, and that everything would be alright.

Despite the craziness and the urgency, the first thing that left his lips was, "I missed you."

He waited for the "I missed you too" but she was too busy filling him in on what Slade and his men had done, and what she had tried to do to save them. Then they were too busy escaping for Oliver to even disappointed at the fact that she hadn't missed him. Also, too busy watching Chloe being a badass.

He had his back against the wall Chloe stepping into his space, her green eyes intense as they bored into his own. "Do you trust me?" And just like that, the doubts and the fear that had snuck past his defenses vanished.

Sincerely and vehemently, Oliver replied, "With my life." Whatever happened, whatever her reasons, he trusted her. More than anything.

He certainly trusted her intelligence and instincts to get them out alive. She had proven enough times that she was more than qualified for the job, especially when it came to saving Oliver. So he followed her lead all the way to the roof of the fake Daily Planet.

When she told him that they needed to jump to get out of this matrix like world, and that he believe her completely for him not to die of a heart attack, he barely paused in his response. Of course he believed her. Of course he would jump.

One second, he's plummeting to the street miles down and the next he's sitting bolt upright on a metal table in the middle of a self constructed laboratory. He may have panicked at the sudden change of scenery, but it didn't have any time to foster for Chloe was beside him, her delicate, calming hand on his arm to keep him grounded.

Disoriented or not, he swung his leg over the table, stood up, and kissed her passionately. She fell into his embrace. Breathing in the same breath as her, he whispered. "I missed you."

"How touching," a mocking, masculine voice interrupted their formal reunion. "Care to get a room?"

Reluctantly, Oliver let Chloe go and pivoted. Flagg. Oliver settled at the sight of him. "Back down." Chloe ordered and Oliver did as she said. Until he realized that he wasn't the one she was giving the command to. As soon as she had spoken, Flagg backed down and him and his goons scuffled back the way they had come. "I'll explain later," she promised, then went to the computers to plug back in.

Which left Oliver waiting, then fighting, then waiting some more. Very similar to how he had been living these past few months.

When it was all over, Chloe disappeared. It hardly mattered that Oliver knew that she was with Clark, trying to mend their fragile friendship. Her extended absence made him nervous, unable to rid the feeling of abandonment that had persisted during her leave.

This time though, she did return, and the sight of her once again in the WatchTower, steadied his heartbeat.

It was with this steady heartbeat that Oliver admitted the butteredness that had been present during her absence. "I just stopped looking for you. Figured that's what you wanted." He paused to give her the chance to lower her gaze in shame.

She tried to explain herself, saying something about what Dr. Fate had shown her and what he had warned her about in the upcoming darkness.

"Didn't the helmet say anything about how I'd be sitting here alone, listening to old voicemails just to hear your voice? Or that I'd be scanning every face on the subway in hopes I'd come across your smile."

There were tears in her eyes that did well to keep from falling down her cheeks. The sight of her crying was a sharp pain in his chest, but he stayed where he was and waited for her to justify leaving him. Because he wanted to forgive her. Hell,. He had already forgiven her a long time ago. But he also needed to understand why.

"There's no way I'd walk out that front door. And there hasn't been a day that I haven't dreamed about when I would through it again."

She was full of sincerity and heartache. With a sigh and a step forward he wondered, "Are you sticking around for awhile?"

Eyes still casted downwards, she answered, "Yeah."

A beat. A smile. More than a dozen roses. "Good."


	14. Chapter 14

For all the horrible things that had occurred lately, Oliver has a moment of relief. As the sun lifted through his window, he was in Heaven. Chloe was tucked securely at his side, her blonde hair tickling his chin and her steady breath on his chest. Her left arm was swung around his midsection just as his was wrapped around her.

After the heartfelt breakdown at the WatchTower, they had escaped unseen back to Oliver's loft. And though there was still a lot they needed to discuss, they had let it go for the night. The moment they had closed the door, Chloe had invaded his space, whispering "I love you" against his skin. That was all Oliver needed for him to lose in her. They had spent the entire night and the early morning hours making up for all the lost time.

"I've missed you so much," he nuzzled into her hair, angling his head to kiss just beside her ear. It was a surprisingly sensitive spot for Chloe and she always melted further into him when he did it. She hummed happily and dug herself further into his side.

When she woke up just a little before noon, he made her breakfast. They ate in contented silence, enjoying the food and the coffee, and each other. He sat on the couch and watched her in adoration as she got ready for the day. Then, when she apologized for having to head out, he kissed her passionately and made her promise to return when she was done dealing with Tess.

"You seem happy," Lois commented with a warm smile a few days later.

"Well, things are looking up."

She nodded, though she wasn't entirely as convinced as him. "It must certainly feel that way with Chloe back." But then her expression became a bit more serious and she asked in a rather quiet manner. "How have you two been doing?"

"Good. She's back." That's all that mattered. That's all he could allow to matter at the moment. He needed to concentrate on the good things in life again, and Chloe was it.

"Right. I know. I just mean, I also know that just because she's back doesn't fix everything."

His joy of the past few days waned. "Everything's fine."

Her eyes were sad if not irritatingly understanding. "Oliver, she was gone for months. Without a word."

He wasn't sure what her end goal was, but suddenly her presence wasn't as welcomed as it usually was. Bitterly, he defended, "She did what she thought was right. She made a choice and that choice saved us."

"I know that Ollie,' Lois pleaded with him to listen. "I'm not mad at her. I understand. And I know you do too. But I also know that you can't ignore what happened. It isn't healthy."

For whatever good intentions Lois had, Oliver didn't think he could continue with the conversation.

Because him and Chloe were good. Of course they were: she was back. Plus, they had already talked. Maybe it was briefly. Maybe it didn't completely encompass all that had tormented Oliver for the months she had disappeared. But it was still a talk. Everything else could be dropped. The past was the past. It was done with.

Now she was practically living with him. With her apartment blown up and having given Tess reign over WatchTower, there hadn't been much of a choice where Chloe would stay. She certainly didn't want to have to bunk with Clark and Lois, not wanting to disturb their domestic bliss as they prepared for their upcoming wedding. Still, little choice or not, they had been living in sync.

She always came home in the late evening, cuddling up with him on the couch and tugging him to bed. In the morning she was there to hold tight to his chest and then eat breakfast together. During the day Chloe went out helping Tess with updates, being a sidekick to Clark, and doing her best to make sure that the rest of the team - as quiet as they had promised to be - remained safe. While out, they kept in constant communication whether through texts or calls. There was rarely a moment that Oliver didn't know where Chloe was.

The constant knowledge of her whereabouts was mostly because of the level of communication that had developed since she had come back, and partly because Chloe had insisted on showing Oliver how to track her phone if he ever felt the need to. He hadn't used it yet, but it was there as a security measure in case of emergencies.

In the daylight hours, they each did their part as heroes (and yes, Oliver saw her as hero, not a sickick, though he still made good use of fond nickname) and at home they kept things light.

So whatever Lois's concerns were, Oliver didn't need them. Him and Chloe were great. More than great really.

Which was why he was a little surprised, and also very much annoyed, that Tess would show up later that same day for similar reasons.

He deflated at the sight of her, having had the hope that it was Chloe coming home early. "What do you want?" His annoyance took a backseat to seriousness at a sudden image. "Did something happen? What's wrong?"

The look she gave him was unimpressed. Don't worry Ollie. I'm sure if something was wrong, Chloe would have told you. You know, somewhere between the ten texts you send everything thirty minutes."

They were locked in a bland stare, until Oliver asked again, "Then what are you doing here?" He didn't mean to sound as annoyed as he did, seeing as Chloe had come back with a mind to forgive the intense red-head, but she still had that effect on him.

"I'm a little worried about you and Chloe." She may have been sincere, but her tone was one of indifference.

"Been talking to Lois?"

"Maybe. And maybe Clark...and Chloe."

His brows creased. "You spoke with Chloe about us?"

That mere thought shook his faith that he and her were indeed fine. Because, Chloe, as much as she had come back with the air of forgiveness about her, didn't like Tess. She may have been okay with the woman being a part of the team, but they certainly weren't friends. What was so wrong with his and Chloe's relationship that she felt the need to disclose her concerns with Tess.

"Well, it was more of me making observations and Chloe unable to deny them."

That didn't make anything better. He tensed, knowing that she was about to point out her observations to him as well, and that he didn't want to hear it. "I think it's best if you leave," he stated coldly, not so subtly pushing her out the door.

It was then that his reality began to crack. Was everyone able to see that something was wrong with him and Chloe? Did Chloe think there was something wrong between them? Had he been in denial?

Tess left, and all at once everything that had been feeling great recently now was feeling like it had a taint over it. As if all those wonderful feelings that had come back with the return of Chloe, weren't all that wonderful when the lights had been shined on them directly.

It wasn't supposed to be like this. Things were supposed to be better now that she was back. Chloe was here, so everything was supposed to go back to the way it was meant to be. It wasn't supposed to be like this, with others worrying about his relationship.

She came home at the time she usually did, wearing her brilliant smile and moving in for a hug and chaste kiss. "How was your day?"

"Interesting, I suppose. Possibly enlightening."

Her eyebrows scrunched together, trying to figure out what he meant. "Care to elaborate?" She moved cautiously, further into the living room.

He followed her, obviously on edge. "Is everything okay with us?" Was he always this insecure? He didn't think he was, but maybe it was just more apparent with Chloe, who always saw past his barriers anyways.

"I thought it was." Her smile was strained. "Is that not what you think?"

"I didn't think so until Lois and Tess brought it to my attention today."

She tilted her head, which he usually found cute (still did) but couldn't let it affect his mood. Maybe he should talk to Chloe more thoroughly. More than just a moment in WatchTower where he scolded her heatedly and then suddenly drop it. As if she hadn't left for months without any sign that was fine. Or that just because he understood why she had done it, that her leaving hadn't destroyed him.

"I didn't think you were the type to put so much stock on what others had to say." This was her way of deflecting. He had seen it before, many times. Back when she was the "sidekick" it used to piss him off. When he fell for her, that trait of hers was all of sudden something he had ignored. Upon second thought, the incident with skimming his money for hidden kryptonite had been the last he had called her on any of her bullshit.

"Chloe," he stared at her intently, watching as her intelligent eyes became twinged with a slight worry, on the verge of fear. His voice sorted slightly. "If something's wrong, don't you think we should talk about it so that we can fix it?"

He wouldn't take no for an answer, he had decided. Whatever it was that was between them, whatever every else was seeing, it needed to be fixed. Oliver wouldn't be able to handle it if they fell apart just as he had gotten her back.

Sincerity overtook her. She re-positioned herself on the couch so that she was sitting on her knees. "Ollie, we're fine. I promise."

As much as he wanted to believe her, to just let it slide once more, it wasn't worth the possible permanent break in their relationship. So he forced himself to wait for her to explain.

"I love you Ollie. You have to believe that."

He may have narrowed his eyes at that, not in anger but in concern. Was this what she was so worried about? That he didn't believe her words of sentiment anymore? Because that had never been the issue.

"Of course I believe you. I love you too." Green eyes were downcast, trying to hide whatever emotion he may have otherwise seen? "Which is why I want to make sure everything with us is good." He took a seat next to her. The instant that he did, she moved in closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder. "I was a mess with you gone. A shell of myself. Not as destructive as I was after Doomsday, but hardly who I was with you."

She burrowed deeper into his side. "I was a mess too." Her voice was soft and wrecked. "And I'm so sorry for leaving Ollie. I...I had to. But that doesn't make it all okay. I wished it did, but it doesn't. But I do promise you that I'm not going to leave again. Not without you anyways."

He held onto her tighter, realizing what Lois and Tess had seen. All the texts, the calls, the constant need to know where she was…. Chloe was trying so hard (too hard) to make up for disappearing.

Obviously they weren't perfectly okay. They were just trying to be together, ignoring their pain until it was healed. Except, it wasn't how a real, healthy relationship worked. And now that Chloe was back, he did want something real. Something healthy. He wouldn't settle for anything less.


	15. Chapter 15

They were lying together in bed, the laptop sitting between them. His chin rested atop her messy blonde hair, breathing in the faint scent of green apple that she shampooed with. Absentmindedly, her fingers drew patterns across his naked chest.

"Pro-hero rally, huh?" he smiled into her hair. He could feel the vibration of her pleased 'hmm', and he knew then and there it would be a good day.

And for the bumps in the road (Martha's shooting, the return of Lionel and Lex Luthor, and the government still pressing their insane registration act) he has been correct in that assumption. Afterall, at the end of the day Martha Kent was safe and still very enthusiastic in her title as a senator to stop the insanity, the Luthors had been dealt with for the time being, and most surprisingly, the people they had devoted their lives to saving had banded together to save them in return.

It was such a good day, in fact, that it seeped into the days that followed. A new energy within him and a new beginning before him, he donned his disguise of black-on-black - shades included - and went out to fancy restaurant to seduce a beautiful woman.

Chloe gifted him with her charming, teasing smile as he gracefully took the bar stool next to her. With a wave of heat encompassing him, he smiled and teased back, playing her game of being strangers.

"Well, you wouldn't want to have dinner in his place, would you?" She twirled her fingers along her glass, her green eyes sparkling as they coyly looked up at him.

"Me? No. But what would your boyfriend say about that? I mean, I heard he's a pretty tough guy."

"Well, I can't exactly call him my boyfriend." She was still teasing. He could see that in her wicked grin. Still, he was having none of it.

Leaning forward, seriousness exuding his entire demeanor, he took off his shades so that she would have to stare straight into his eyes as he sincerely said to her, "I think Oliver Queen would be an absolute fool to let someone like you get away."

"You're damn right."

He thought their little game would end there as they slowly moved in for a kiss. For all their rushed passion that typically went into their relationship, it was nice to do this with such playfulness and laziness. It made him feel like this was where they needed to be.

Not in terms of time and place, but in terms of who they were. This right here: the ease, the flirting, the coy smiles, and the comfort of knowing one another even as they hid from the rest of the world. This was where they were supposed to be.

In his haze of being completely head over heels for this woman, though, he continued to play her game, even as it turned into them being the Joneses for the night, just so that they could finally sit and enjoy their meal.

Because really, what other choice did he have but to follow her lead. She had her dainty hand clasped around his, pulling him forward as the waitress sat them down in a nearly secluded area He watched as her red dress swished around her knees.

"The universe just gave a guy with a secret and a girl with no identity the chance to enjoy an evening night out," she convinced him further. Her eyes were dancing along with lifting smile because she knew he wouldn't argue against her logic.

And she was right. He didn't have the strength to argue with her. He didn't want to argue. What he wanted was for this evening to continued with the same ease and fun that it had started with. To sit across from a woman he loved, and who loved him, and for once have it just be about them.

Of course, they had had moment to themselves in the past, but those moments had mostly been them taking off their clothes and falling into bed. He enjoyed those specific moments, obviously, but it was nice to have more. Healthy, he added, because that had been his resolution, for him and Chloe to have a healthy, real relationship.

They went through much of the evening in this manner. As time wore on, Chloe had moved closer into his space, and their wine glasses had steadily drained, and the more relaxed Oliver became.

Then, because this was their life, the evening had to come to an end. It wouldn't have been possible for them to steal this evening from another couple unless of course that couple was in danger.

All playfulness pushed roughly aside, they became who they had chosen to be long before this time - the Green Arrow and Watch Tower. As wonderful as the date had been, there was no hesitation from either of them as they stood and made their way to leave, determined to save the stranger they had momentarily pretended to be.

But even that, the sudden end to an amazing dinner, wasn't enough to bother Oliver. This was who they were. They could play normal for however long they had time for, but when duty called, they were both ready for action. And that was perfectly fine, with Oliver. More than perfect. Chloe wasn't just the girl he wanted a relationship with, to go out on dates and spoil; she was the sole person that he wanted as his partner. A partner in every aspect of his life.

No, it wasn't until they had been stuffed inside a truck that he became bothered.

Actually, it wasn't even the trunk part that truly bothered him (because really this wasn't anything new) it was Chloe and her stupid mindset.

"Hell of a way to spend an anniversary, huh?" he shook his head in a bitterly, trying to be amused chuckle. What he expected in return was a joking retort. Instead, what he received was a long pause. Too long of a pause.

Had Chloe really forgotten? Had she really had no clue as to why he had made such a big deal about going out that evening? Had he really been alone in his desire to celebrate and honor all they had gone through this past year?

It would have been one thing for Chloe to admit that she had forgotten. The admission would have stung, but he would have gotten over it. He would have forgiven her. He'd give her hell about it, but he'd still forgive.

What she said was so much worse. "I did not forget that it's been a year since we started doing… whatever it is we're doing?"

He stared at her in their dark, enclosed space. Seriously? He tried to rein in his self-control. Seriously?! Whatever it was they were doing? What on earth did she think they were doing? "Wow," he just wanted to shake his head and shake some sense into her. "You weren't joking around at the restaurant, were you? You don't know what to call me."

"Not in so many words."

He took a deep sigh, bracing himself. Explain this calmly, he told himself. Do not yell. This was not the time or place for yelling… no matter how stupid she was being.

"We spend every waking moment together, right? We've said our 'I love yous' how many times, huh? Several." He couldn't believe he was having to spell this out for her. In a trunk of all places! "What do you call that?"

He wanted to hear her answer. And she was about to give it too. Except, there was a bump and she took the interruption as a way out. Turning away from his expectant gaze, she huffed. "Can we talk about this later?"

"Yea, no. I'd love to do that...if there is a later."

He could feel it when she rolled her eyes. "You're so dramatic." Beneath her breath, she mumbled, "Drama Queen."

He ignored her annoyance, preferring his own.


	16. Chapter 16

Oliver stared up the stairwell of the Watch Tower, bracing himself for another serious conversation with his fiesty blonde that awaited him. He had to be mature, he reminded himself as he started the climb. As much as he wanted to run up to see her, kiss her passionately, and push his body up against hers, all for the sake of reassuring his crazed heart that she was truly okay and there with him, they needed to talk. The old Oliver and Chloe may have rushed into intimacy, especially after the whirlwind day they just had, but he had made a vow to change. For her. For them.

"You alright?" he asked, forcing himself to appear relaxed and casual.

She looked up from her scattered about paperwork. "I escaped the villain of the piece with nary a mark on my bones."

He smiled, though he found it hard to do so. "I'd expect nothing less."

Nothing less from the woman who had fought by his side in a room full of dangerous, ignorant men with guns. Who had vowed that they would find Mr. Jones and save the day, pouting when he thought it best to leave her on the ground while he looked through the building (obviously the wrong thought). Who had been captured by the darkness, tempted with God knows what, and come out still completely whole.

Her strength and heart still had a way of blowing him away.

He gazed down at her in adoration, only then realizing that what he had thought files for work were actually old photos and yearbooks. "You know," he started again, keeping his tone soft, "the whole 'woman who doesn't exist thing' gets a little less mysterious when yearbooks come into play, right?"

Oliver observed her response. His own eyes remained sincere, waiting for her to steer the conversation where he needed it to go.

"Yea, they're kind of bread crumbs."

"Meaning what? You, uh... feeling lost Chloe?" Because if so, he would find her. He would always find her.

"I have been so many things over the years. Doe-eyed sleuth, intrepid reporter, Watch Tower…"

"Business-suited cyber savior?" He couldn't help but joke. Her smile and small chuckle was enough to keep him from regretting his inability to keep his mouth shut in non-joking moments. Though, he smiled back, if anyone who understood and reveled in that inability of his, it was Chloe.

Becoming serious once more, Chloe continued to explain, "I've always wound up defining myself by some group or cause or other person." Her eyes looked sad, and, he was defeated to admit, lost. He drew in closer. "Um...I haven't felt like Chloe since… well Chloe 1.0 anyways since…" she glanced down at her yearbook photo, so young and hopeful and ready to succeed in whatever she chose to do.

He glanced down too, struck by how much she had in fact changed. That Chloe on the page was a Chloe Oliver had never had the chance to meet. That Chloe was a Chloe that only Clark had ever known.

"And then I erased it all. I gave it all away. I think that's why I've been struggling to define myself against you."

Just as he had wanted, she had taken the conversation where it needed to be, to the definition of who they were to each other, but now Oliver wasn't sure if he could bear to hear it. Suddenly, he was afraid to her what she had to say.

"I'm...I'm afraid I'm gonna lose the last little bit of me that I have left."

No, he promised. He would never take away any part of herself. "No matter what happens I know who you are." Because he may not have known Chloe 1.0, but he certainly knew the woman she had become, the woman standing across from him, unshed tears glistening in her dark green eyes.

"I know. And that's why I have never questioned the love I have for you."

He smiled with just a twitch of his lips as he stood to escort her out of Watch Tower, relief consuming his entire being at hearing her confirmation. Chloe was safe. They were in love. Everything would be okay.

Oliver wrapped an arm around her shoulder, kissing the top of her head. "So, I got a question for you. When people see this adorable blonde and you are on this adorable blonde's arm, what will they call you?" He looked at her with the same serious expectancy as when they had been trapped inside trunk of a car. This time, however, he knew she would have a response...and hopefully it was what he needed to hear.

"Let's start with girlfriend, and go from there?"

His smile widened. "Okay. Girlfriend sounds kind of high school."

"Shut up. I'm a serious."

Oh, he knew; he had known for quite some time. Still, it was nice to hear out loud that she understood it now too.

Girlfriend, he smiled as he held onto her tighter. Then they would go from there.


	17. Chapter 17

"Ollie?" Chloe's sleepy voice carried from the bedroom into the living room where he sat on the couch, watching a muted movie with the subtitles on.

"In here," he called back to her.

Wearing nothing but an old T-shirt of his, Chloe followed the sound of his voice, her eyes half closed. "What are you doing?"

"Couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd tire my eyes out by watching something boring."

It shouldn't have been a surprise that instead of going back to the comfort and warmth of the king sized bed, she snuggled up to him on the couch, he legs curled up to her chest and her head resting on his leg. Unconsciously, his fingers threaded through her thick, short blonde hair. The motion was soothing to both of them: Chloe who immediately fell back asleep as soon as she came into contact with her boyfriend, and Oliver who, though he had no intention of keep his eyes closed, felt a wave of peace wash over him.

As happy as he was with Chloe, his official girlfriend that he had close to his side in times of fighting, planning, and laughter, a darkness had settled within him in the past week. It wasn't something he could describe or understand, for he knew that he was in a better place than he had ever been before.

During the day he had managed to push that darkness aside. Chloe, the light of his life, would smile or say something, and suddenly the darkness was washed away. Having a purpose as the Green Arrow once more also helped ground him during the waking hours. There were the brief texts and calls from the original Justice League (Victor, Bart, and Arthur) that kept him reassured and content. Though it was saddening to think that times and other pursuits had pulled them apart, he was glad to hear that they were doing what they could for the people of their hometowns and enjoying their personal relationships as they should. It was it's own comfort to know that they were thriving as their own heroes. Then there was Lois with her warm smiles, not just treating him as the friends they had always been, but as part of her family. And of course there was Clark, who needed him more often than not to play his role as the best man in his upcoming wedding, whether it was to listen to the man's nervous rants, go with him to fit tuxedos, or help him with whatever errand Lois had sent him off on.

When night fell upon the city, though, there was no escaping the darkness that had begun to stalk him. Oliver found himself wide awake, either starin at his white ceiling or at his TV screen because the blood in his veins was too hot and there were horrible images playing just behind his eyelids.

Over and over again, he saw himself bully others in school. The most recurring image was that of a rather quiet Lex that Oliver had tormented, and that of a boy who had died because of something Oliver had had a hand in.

He saw the faces of heartbroken women that he had taken advantage of and then forgotten their names the next morning. Those he had damaged all because of his own insecurities and self-hatred.

There was the day he had learned about his parents' death, and how he was consumed by rage and the need for vengeance against the man he knew was responsible. It hadn't mattered how young he had been at the time of their death, Oliver had imagined Luthor's death violently and in great detail.

He re-lived all the things he had had to do on that island so many years ago in order to survive. His anger had fueled his ability to do what had needed to be done at the time, and it wasn't until much later than he had the emotional stability to regret the blood that stained his hands.

Then there was murder of Lex - the building that he had been holed up in destroyed from the explosion that Oliver had rigged himself. And even though Oliver hadn't been there in person to see the destruction, he now heard Lex's shrill cries for help turn into screams of agonizing pain.

Jimmy's grave mocked him for his incompetence. The picture that lay beside the fresh flowers was angry at the betrayal that Oliver had dared to commit.

The Toymaker forced him into a suicidal situation that Oliver had been all but willing to accept. It was the least he could do after all the bad he had done. The evil of not just killing, but placing the blame on someone else's shoulders.

"Your weakness is as clear as day."

Oliver hadn't thought much about the words at the time as his fist continued to connect with the man that laughed as he said Chloe was dead. His whole being had been too obsessed with the idea of Chloe, and needing to have her safe, that he could barely hear what the man was saying beneath the blood running down his nose and past his mouth. Rage had taken ahold of him in that instance, and nothing else had mattered.

But that was what the problem was - what his weakness was - his rage.

Even as a child with the love of his parents and everything he would ever want, he had been angry. That illogical anger had made him insensitive and cruel. After his parents' death, he had learned to be a better person - to fight for others rather than to simply fight them - but his rage remained. In fact, his rage had only gotten worse.

He looked down at the woman on his lap and misery enshrouded him. As much as Chloe had saved him and made him a better person, his anger wasn't something she would be able to save.


	18. Chapter 18

The nightmares of haunting images still plagued him, and he could still feel the darkness closing in around him, but he was getting better at pushing it aside. Chloe noticed that things weren't up to standards with him, aware that he wasn't getting enough sleep. She would wake and find him already up, eyes usually shadowed and spirits down. "Nightmare," he tell her, as she petted his hair and frowned.

But then duties pulled them away from the loft and his exhaustion was pushed aside. He would walk out and the sun would beat down upon him. Friends would need him, would amuse him, and seek him out for one reason or another. People would be saved and a heroes work would never be done. In all of this, the darkness would be hidden for a time.

"You sure you're okay?" Chloe worried as they got ready to head out to the Kent farm.

Oliver grinned in response, ignoring the fact that she had long since learned to see past his facades. Before she could argue, he reasoned, "I'm fine, Chloe. Just a little tired, is all. This is Lois and Clark's big night night before their happily forever after. An evening of fun that I think we all deserve." He kissed her chastely and then tugged her out the door.

Honestly, his claims felt like the truth as he said them. Out of everything that could outshine the darkness that had begun to try to encompass him, Chloe and Clark had proven to be the best remedy.

And what was more distracting them a bachelor party? Not just any bachelor party, at that, but one thrown by the Oliver Queen himself. It was going to be a night of friends, booze, and an adventure of the non-heroing type. A night that would be forever remembered.

That was, of course, until morning came and he found himself on some railroad track with absolutely no memory of what had happened after the toast.

Through the haze and headache of the hangover, Oliver had the brief thought to be thankful that there hadn't been any dark images haunting his unconsciousness. For while his head was pounding, he also felt like he had finally got a decent amount of sleep without the nuisance of tossing and turning in agony.

Immediately after, he had the depressing thought that as great as the night must have been to land him here, he couldn't remember any of it. "And here I thought my drunken blackout days were over," he groaned.

As he walked beside Lois to get back to the city, he did briefly wonder why he was with her. The toast that Chloe had made had meant to push the groom and bride apart, to be pulled along somewhere by their best man or maid of honor. Where the hell was Clark and Emil? Why wasn't Lois with the girls? And, spiraling out of those internal inquiries, when had Oliver changed into this ugly, lime green suit? More importantly, who on earth had been selling it?

What kind of trouble had they gotten themselves into, and how was he going to fix it?

Despite the questions that only made his headache worse, there was a part of him that enjoyed the following day as the group re-enacted their own version of The Hangover.

For starters, it had been a while since he had spent quality time with Lois. Any romantic residue that may have preceded after their breakup had long since dissipated into the netherlands, but she was still the fiery Lois Lane that he had met all those years ago, and just as it had always been, her company was more than welcomed. Even if that company was of her being consumed by anxiety over a lost engagement ring, and then wanting to do nothing less than punch the living daylights out of the wanna-be godfather that had dared scam her out of it.

Which at one point had led them to be tied up, listening to Lois go on and on about Mr. Perfect as he set to cutting their restraints, and then going undercover as a showgirl. Confident in his sexuality, Oliver had actually enjoyed putting on the showgirl outfit and going out on stage. Not that he would say as much, and was thankful that none of the guys on the team had seen him. But he could see the charm in dressing up, the harmless fun of putting on a disguise that wasn't equipped with arrows.

He laughed at the man that tried to hit on him, taking pleasure in knocking him unconscious. He grinned cheekily in response to Chloe's "Hey hot stuff."

It was an adventurous night, he concluded. One that didn't require them to be heroes, though being heroes had certainly gave them an advantage.

"So," he patted Clark on the back when he came back with a bruised and bloody, but seemingly okay Emil. "Do I know how to throw a bachelor party or what?"

As expected, Clark glared. "I think strippers would have been safer," he muttered, low enough that Lois wouldn't hear him from where she stood sharing her tales with her cousin.

Oliver laughed. "And face the wrath of Lois for putting you in such a compromising position. Nah man, this was the best I could offer."

It wasn't until later that he was filled in on the real reason for all their drunken escapades and lost memories: Zatana. Zatana, who always seemed to have somewhat well-meaning intentions that never worked out well for those involved. Then again, who was Oliver to judge how well things had turned out?

Afterall, Lois' nerves had calmed drastically once the ring had been re-obtained. All her nervous jitters about the wedding ceased. Clark was assured that no amount of crazy would send the love of his life packing. Emil had broken out of his shell, showing off a completely different side of himself. Tess had been accepted into the fold of the group, and from the looks of it, had let loose for once. If Oliver didn't know better, he'd think Tess had had fun.

And Oliver, well, he had a clear mind, full of shining light. That, as well as half of a marriage certificate with his signature that had been stashed in his coat pocket. It didn't take much to figure out whose name would be on the other half.

The thought sent a warmth spreading throughout his chest. Whatever darkness that may have lingered, disappeared. He and Chloe were married.

Granted, it might not have been what he had pictured, or had even thought to imagine, but there was a sense of rightness to it. The moment she had saved him from himself, she had been positioned as his beacon of light. A light that he wouldn't be able to live without. Recent events had proven that.

So really, this piece of paper that had been torn apart, had always been the next logical step. At least to him.

He just hoped that Chloe wouldn't be frightened away by the knowledge of the newest label that they had stumbled themselves into. Scratch that. He knew for a fact that it would frighten her. No doubt she was planning to run that very minute. The instinct to run when things picked up a notch in the commitment department was a Lane-Sullivan family trait.

This time around, though, he had the hope of getting to her before she took off. After everything they had been through since she had come back, he was sure in his ability to convince her that stay by his side. He had done well enough to convince her to put a label on them.

When Chloe snuck out of Watch Tower as their drunken misadventures played on the screen, he waited just a moment longer, watching their evening in amusement, before he followed her out. He took it as a good sign that she was pacing back and forth on the pavement right outside, as if she were waiting for him to catch up to her.

"You're leaving," he stated when he stood in front of her. "I know the signs." She had the decency of looking ashamed, her gaze cast downwards. Another good sign. She didn't want to leave; she had just gotten it into her head that it would be the best course of action. "But I know you weren't thinking of leaving without your husband." He took out the torn certificate. His smile became more apparent when she revealed her half. "There's got to be a reason you took a job in my hometown."

Because if she was going to run, he was going to run with her. And what better place to run to than Star City? A place (a home) where the stars brightened the path even on the darkest of nights.


	19. Chapter 19

Metropolis had never been Oliver's home. No matter where he found himself, and no matter what he did, home to him meant Star City.

In recent years, though, that hadn't seemed like the case. Originally drawn to Kansas to right wrongs, he had kept returning and had kept staying because of the people that he had found there. Throughout these years Star City remained in his heart as his home, but Metropolis had become the center of his world.

Which was an odd thought to have, really. In Star City he was the charming, playful billionaire that was in charge of the most influential industries in the area. He was the hero. The only one. Whereas in Metropolis, his status as CEO hardly meant anything to the powerhouses of the city. And though he was still a hero, he wasn't _the_ hero. Fighting beside Clark, to be honest, he had been more of a sidekick.

Still, Metropolis had a sense about it that his home had lacked. There was a sense of belonging and acceptance.

Kansas had Lois - beautiful and determined - who had managed to not only catch his attention but hold onto it with a deathly grip. In those early years she had been the reason he kept coming back even when trouble didn't call for him.

It had Clark - righteous and powerful - who had showed him that there was a better way to be hero. Even through their arguments and bitterness, Clark had quickly become someone that Oliver could trust.

It had Dr. Emil Hamilton - intelligent and willing to be of use - who readily agreed to be the doctor to a group of reckless heroes. Then later somehow stepped away from being the Justice League's doctor, to just being a part of the team.

It had Tess...leave that sentiment where it may.

And it had Chloe - fierce and ambitious - who had gone from being a handy sidekick, to WatchTower, to a friend that would always be there, to the most important person in his world.

"You okay?" Chloe hugged his side, looking up at him with a dazzling smile. "You seem lost in thought."

He smiled back at her, holding her tight to him. "I was just thinking how strange it was to be back."

"A good kind of strange I hope."

"I think so." He nodded. Because with Chloe with him, Star City wasn't just his home anymore, as it has always been, but it now had the best part of Metropolis; his wife. Suddenly there was so much potential in his life. Whatever danger might be outside waiting for them, he felt that had it all. He was back at home with the intention to stay. The love of his life was by his side. And along with that, that wonderful sense of belonging and acceptance.

The first two weeks of them arriving in Star City was spent getting situated in in the penthouse that Oliver had bought them and setting up for their new chapter. It was a lot of bringing over their things from Kansas, giving away most of it (keeping only things of sentimental value and hero related), and finding ways to compromise.

Not that there was much to compromise on. They fell into an easy routine of asking the other's opinion on something, kissing and laughing in their agreement, and then getting sidetracked by other more intimate things. It made their moving in longer than it could have been, but there was hardly any complaints from either of them.

The easy way in which they decorated and arranged their new home shouldn't have surprised Oliver. They'd been living at the loft together since she had gotten back (seeing as the Talon had been blown up), and she had gladly accepted his help in rebuilding WatchTower the first time it had been destroyed.

"So," Chollie grinned once they had finished. "Home sweet home?" He went to retrieve the wine from the kitchen counter to celebrate. As he poured their glasses, she wondered, "Do you think we should invite people as a, I don't know, type of house warming party?"

"Hmm?"

She was leaning into him now, glass in hand. "Well, I hear that's what married couple do when they move."

"Married couple?" Besides that evening when Oliver had presented her with his half of the marriage certificate, neither one of them had said the word "married" or "husband" or "wife". At least not out loud. Oliver said it all the time in his head.

Everything they did was tied to the fact that they had gotten married, but there seemed to be a veil between them that didn't allow for that fact to be spoken.

There was a part of Oliver that may have still held onto the insecurity that Chloe would be spooked away by all this. The wedding hadn't been planned, afterall, and it had happened very suddenly. Too scared by how she had reacted to their growing relationship in the beginning, and at every little step of progress that was made in that relationship, he was afraid that she'd back away even now. That she'd realize that they were moving too fast for her liking and take this all away from him.

"Yes. A married couple," she was laughing and rolling her eyes as if such a fear was ridiculous. Casually, she explained, "I figured we could invite the boys. Tell them the good news."

He knew exactly who she meant when she said "boys", and the prospect of inviting them to their new home made him smile widely. It had been too long since he had seen them - especially Bart and Victor. Plus, he could just imagine the look on their faces when they told them the announcement.

It had to be better than the reaction they had received when they told the team back in Metropolis. Right before they flew off to Star City, promising top still help with whatever little wedding planning still needed to be taken care of, and to obviously come back for the wedding itself, they had awkwardly informed them about their own.

Both Chloe and Oliver had been anxious to share the news, afraid of the judgemental, raise eyebrows and the questioning tones. They had prepared themselves to explain how it was a good thing, and that they were ready for this, and how everything was great between them. Instead, the others had scoffed lightly, their amusement clear in their chuckles.

"I sort of figured by the way you two were dressed," Lois said.

"It was obvious from the video," Emil and Tess shrugged pretty much in sync. Oliver almost snapped back that there had been plenty of obvious things on that video about them too, but he kept his mouth shut.

Almost sheepishly, Clark admitted, "I saw the torn marriage certificate in your pockets."

Oliver kind of hoped that the others would be at least a little more surprised.

With everything that had been going on with the Justice League lately that had separated them, it was actually fairly easy to contact the group.

Bart's response was a quick, "Hell yea. Anytime. Anywhere."

Victor seemed just as excited, but was much more calm about it. "Just give me a few days notice man. Oh, and can I bring my girlfriend?"

Arthur was a little more difficult to get a hold of, and when they finally did get to him, the first thing he said was "I don't know."

Oliver scoffed at the attempt for indifference and just settled for an annoyed command, "Bring Meera."

All in all, it was a great start to their new life. They had everything good from Kansas and everything that would turn out great in California.


	20. Chapter 20

Oliver found it endearing that Chloe seemed to have got it into her head that she had to play the part of a domesticated, "good" wife - whatever that meant. All the roles that he knew her capable of playing, all the roles that he knew she took on with a brilliant flare, it had never crossed his mind that one of those role would be in the kitchen. For all that he believed her to be, he didn't think her place was to cook, or to clean, or to be in charge of the household. Her place was past that, beyond the scope of what these four walls could contain.

Yet, the afternoon of the "house warming" Oliver leaned against the kitchen doorway, watching Chloe fondly as she assembled something edible for their guests. After the third food tasting, however, no amount of fondness was going to let her stay in the kitchen. Shaking his head at her pretty pout, he shooed her way. "You're not allowed past this line until everyone is gone. Understood? Unless of course, you want to make the boys too sick to leave." She stuck out her tongue and stationed herself on the couch with her laptop.

He truly didn't mind. Whatever thoughts that might have entered her head to make her attempt such a feat that day, Oliver had never questioned what type of wife Chloe would end up being. In the year and a half that they had been together, plus all the years that they worked alongside one another, he never expected her to be domesticated. Just because their relationship had taken that next official step didn't mean that expectation changed.

Victor showed up first with his beautiful girlfriend, the very respectable Dr. Sarah Charles. Oliver had met her a handful of times, but he hadn't paid much attention to her. At the time Vic had still been trying to make things work with his high school sweetheart, and Dr. Charles had simply been the brilliant mind in helping the cyborg with physical therapy and the function of his machine parts. With her by his side, Vic appeared more relaxed. Rather than the man who had been at war with himself since the forced addition to the technology embedded into his entire being, Vic was now at peace. Not only at peace, but happily moving forwards.

He gave Oliver a quick, brotherly hug, but then went straight to Chloe with Sarah at his side. The three were immediately immersed in a conversation that Oliver couldn't ever hope to keep up with.

Bart arrived next, speeding through their home in a blur. Oliver hadn't even known he was there until he heard the young man flirt with his wife while he was making sure everything was running smoothly in the kitchen. Rolling his eyes, he stepped back into the living room. "Hey!" He called out, catching the tail end of a tight embrace and a kiss on the cheek.

Impulse turned to him with an impudent smile. "Hey."

"So what? You come in and just ignore the host?"

The smile widened. "I wanted to greet the prettier host first." Like all the countless times before, Chloe smiled and shimmered under the flirtatious attention.

AC arrived a few minutes late with that new bout of maturity and intensity that came with the title of King of Atlantis. Meera herself had the same aura of confidence and superiority that Oliver had witnessed the last time he they had met, and he was only slightly anxious about how she would take to Chloe. He remembered all too well the power play she had tried to demonstrate over Lois.

In hindsight, he probably shouldn't have worried at all. While AC shook hands with Oliver, Meera had gone straight to Chloe to tug her into a brief but familiar hug. "It is good to see you again Watch Tower."

"It's Chloe." She grinned, catching Oliver's questioning gaze as to when they had even met. "I'm glad you could make it Meera. And thanks for bringing this guy out of the water."

"Of course. Arthur needed to get out and enjoy himself."

It was with that easy atmosphere that the evening continued, the group slowly relaxing back into one another's presence, catching up on the details of each other's lives. It was comforting to know that even after all that had happened to cause a distance, they could still come back to this, to the team that they had once been.

But it was also a little depressing, for it came with the knowledge that moments like this would be few and far between. Despite the fact that they still had this bond, it was also a fact that they were all moving on to something new.

Bart was starting his life in Central life, apparently finishing his education so he could join the investigative force. Oliver smiled as the youngest member of the Justice League shared his future aspirations. The impulsive kid had come a long way from using his powers to steal for himself to not only being a costumed hero, but also wanting to save the day in the hours in between.

Vic had assimilated well into his new home, and with that assimilation came a schedule that kept him extremely busy.

And AC, of course, had an entire entire kingdom to run and protect. It wasn't just one-tracked missions anymore for him. Heck, it wasn't even just a bigger picture kind of thing. It was an entirely different picture.

"None of the others could make it?" Bart asked as they were finishing dinner, food still being shoveled into his mouth.

"We figured we'd just invite the original Justice League this first time."

Always attuned to the subtle shift in tone, Vic stared at Oliver suspiciously. "So, I'm guessing this a special occasion."

"Well it is a housewarming party."

"Spit it out."

Oliver frowned. He had hoped that he and Chloe could give the announcement more regally over drinks or something. He supposed it didn't really matter though, as long as it got said. Chloe was always accusing him of being too dramatic. So he took a deep breath and just let it out. "Chloe and I got married."

Maybe he had expected them to behave as the others did, taking the news with a light hearted scoff claims to have already known. To be fair, the boys had had similar reactions when first finding out about their affair.

"Man, I always knew you were going to take her away from me. But I'll steal her back. Make no doubt about that."

"Good for you. You two complement each other."

"Obviously. Neither one of you is exactly subtle."

Or maybe - hopefully - they would react in surprised excitement as was the proper etiquette. What he had not expected was outrage.

"You can't be serious!"

"What the hell?"

Then the bickering started, too fast and too loud to be understood. Only the girls remained quiet, looking as confused as Oliver felt. Chloe though, smiled knowingly, eyeing Oliver from the side. When the negative response went on a little too long, she finally spoke up, teasing, "Oh come on now, you can't be that upset that he wants to make an honest woman out of me."

It shouldn't have been expected to hear Bart mutter, "Yes I can. Now I'll never have a chance."

Above AC's laughing retort that "dude, you never had a chance", Vic was calming himself down to explain, "How could you two get married and not invite us? I thought the secrecy concerning the two of you was over?"

Though Oliver smiled in turn, responding kind to the teasing atmosphere that gradually came back to surround them, Vic's words cut through him. It was true that Oliver and Chloe's relationship had moved from one secret to the next. Or maybe not a secret necessarily, but certainly something blurry, something hidden. Most of the time something undefined. From the undetermined shakiness of their beginning, to the masked feelings, and then the abandonment. And now this, a marriage born from an evening that they couldn't even remember.

Chloe deserved more than that. She deserved to be treated like she was somebody's world - his world. To not only have the feeling of being in love and being loved in return, but having the memory of that too. To smile with her friends, and her cousin, and share what should be thought back on as one of the happiest days of her life.

Actually, Oliver deserved more. He deserved to have the chance to propose, and to have the joyous memory of her not only saying "yes" but saying "I do". He certainly deserved more than just a video of him talking about rings in a casino restroom wearing an ugly green suit.

At the end of the evening, Oliver followed his guests out, grinning as he promised, "I'll be sure to invite you all to the actual ceremony."

"You better."


	21. Chapter 21

"Having to walk alongside someone with the powers of a God must be so demoralizing." Zod mocked him in his attempts to convince Oliver to betray Clark.

"My ego's firmly intact, thank you very much," he responded snidely, not yet willing to let the Kryptonian to think he had successfully manipulated the hero clad in green leather to the darkness that everyone apparently knew was inherent within him.

But then Zod continued talking. He spoke of Darkseid, which consequently led into the dark agents that the tyrant forced under his command. Though Oliver had yet to fall prey to the darkness that Darkseid had narrowed in on, Oliver knew as well as Zod that the darkness was ever present and ever growing.

He tried to ignored the alien, but as much as Oliver pretended to act as if he weren't affected, he could hear the truth in the words - a truth that had momentarily been cast aside as he lived happily in the home that he had been building with Chloe. A truth that he was now having to face again in the grey, lifeless universe of the Phantom Zone.

Things had been going so well for him recently. Living with Chloe in Star City, getting back into business, and helping Chloe extend the Justice League, had made Oliver feel like light could consume him entirely. During the months that he and Chloe had steadily and cheerfully and easily been creating their joint life together, he had been able to pretend that he wasn't made from darkness, that he could be the man - the hero - that she saved almost two years ago.

Chloe might have been able to save his soul while in his vicinity, sharing her goodness with him just as they shared a home. Away from her, however, his soul was his own, and on his own, he was tainted. As soon as he had arrived at WatchTower to help solve the problem of an escaped Slade Wilson, that darkness had returned, and it had only multiplied here in the Phantom Zone, a place that seemed to thrive on the darkness of people's souls.

Which was why Zod's words became harder to ignore the longer he spoke, knowing that what he said was true. That the anger of his parent's death still made him hollow inside. That he was still capable of terrible things. And that no amount of brightness (Chloe) could truly get rid of the darkness inside him. He was now and forever a weak link in the team, lost to the darkness that Darkseid had seen, utilized, and marked upon his entire being.

Of course, no matter what Zod said, and no matter how Oliver responded in that moment, he would never willingly concede to that darkness. There was nothing that could make him betray Clark.

At least...that's what he had believed up until the moment his sword went through Clark's sternum, and it occurred to Oliver just how easily he could kill him then and there. For an awful moment, Oliver only saw blood.

Thankfully, Clark failed to notice Oliver's moment of weakness, and the Green Arrow was gifted with gratitude and trust once back at WatchTower.

"Oliver?" Tess questioned from behind him when Clark had left to reassure and soothe a more than likely pissed off Lois. When he didn't immediately response, she stepped closer into his space. "You okay?"

"Well, I did go head to head with the superman in the Phantom Zone, a ticking time bomb hanging over lives."

Tes sighed in exasperation. "I mean more than that."

She was always so observant. For just a second, Oliver thought of lying and letting it go, but he quickly deflated. Too much had happened to let him continue like this. "I need to find a way to get rid of Darkseid."

Before she had the chance to reply, probably something about how it was what they were all looking for a way to do, he continued, "Chloe and I have been doing research, and Chloe was able to decipher a lot of Carter's notes. There's this weapon called Orion's Bow. I need your help finding out exactly where it is."

Because he needed to get his hands on it immediately. He couldn't handle what Darkseid had done to him. Now could he allow himself to be locked out of the fight when his team - his friends - needed all the help they could get.

"Alright," Tess reassured him, concern etched into her expression, "I'll get you the information that you need. First though, you should call your wife. You've been gone for three weeks." Oliver groaned, having thought he and Clark had only been gone for a few hours. Damn. That mean he was probably in as much trouble as Clark.

A part of him wanted to return home that instant. He wanted rush through that door and embrace his wife and soak up the brightness that she exuded. Hours for him had been much too long to be away from her, he couldn't image what the last three weeks without any form of communication between them had been like for her.

He wanted nothing more than to go home, but he knew he couldn't. Not yet. Not until he got his hands on the weapon that would destroy Darkseid for good. Because he couldn't just ignore the problem and pretend that he was perfectly okay. Not anymore. If the Phantom Zone had shown him anything, it was that he was standing on the edge of a cliff, waiting for that moment when he would give up on whatever hope tried to hold onto him and fall to his death, taking an unquestionable amount of innocent lives with him.

Instead, he spent three hours on skype while Tess hunted through her records and the rest of Carter's notes that Chloe didn't have at hand. He sincerely apologized, reassured her of his well being, recounted the mission, listened to what she had been working on for the League, and then apologized again when he informed her about what he was about to do next.

She nodded with a sad sigh. "It'll be hard to without any longer, but I understand." He didn't even had to explain his purpose. "Go do what you need to do. I love you."

"I love you too."

So it was with Chloe's blessing and understanding that he tracked down Orion's Bown. With the help of Kara, they passed the trials that stood in their way. But it was alone - as it was intended - that he took the final step.

This was one of those defining moments, Oliver thought as he reached for the bow. He, like Orion, would overcome the darkness within. In front of him, soon to be in his hands, was going to be the salvation that they all needed. It wasn't just Oliver that the bow was going to save; it was everyone.

With his knowledge lodged wholeheartedly within his chest, Oliver took the bow. The moment it rested within his palms, he was able to breathe freely. Suddenly, the weight that had bogged him down was gone.

Then he turned and the darkness welled up inside of him once more, this time consuming even the brightest parts of himself. He sunk to his knees as the darkness took control.

The last spark of light flicked: Chloe.


	22. Chapter 22

Oliver and Chloe were stuck arranging the flowers in the small, ornate church. Every now and then he'd glance sideways from his task to watch his wife, at peace to have once again at his side after too many days of being without. Her presence was a saving grace here in this city where darkness always seemed to cling to him whenever he entered into his borders, a darkness that didn't cower unless it was in contact with the bright light that was Mrs. Chloe Sullivan-Queen.

In his returned state of peace, he joked dryly, "Who knew tying the knot could be so much work? You got to remind to thank Zatanna for making our nuptials so hassle-free."

"I don't know, I would have liked to remember some of the details of our wedding."

"Well, considering the other details of that night, all I really need is a marriage license." By then he had completed his task and turned to face Chloe. She smiled up at him with a glow of happiness that soothed the still raging parts of him.

For a moment they just stared into one another's eyes, a silent agreement passing between them. It was the agreement that they belonged together; that they made each other happier and better people. In that brief, peaceful second, they acknowledge that what the two of them had was something unbeatable. As man and wife they were unbreakable, traditional or not.

So Oliver was a little caught off guard when Chloe wondered inthat voice of hers that was all at once strong, but shaken with small cracks of insecurity. "If Zatanna hadn't put you under that spell would you still have, umm…"

"Gone through with it?" There wasn't doubt as he immediately with, "yeah. It's the best decision I don't remember making." He almost wanted to inform her that he had been having thoughts of making her his wife before Zatanna ever spelled them to do so, but he was wary of ruining the surprise that he was planning for after Clark and Lois had hitched themselves.

The adorable smile that Chloe gifted him with was more than enough to show Oliver that she felt the same. Of course she did. Because no matter how they had gotten there, they belonged together, exactly where they were.

Not that Oliver was thinking of allowing them to stay exactly as they were. After all, he had already promised his team that they would soon be invited to a more public ceremony. He just had to wait for Clark and Lois to have their big day and to bask in the joy of being Mr. and Mrs. Kent. Then he would ease Chloe into the idea of having a more formal union that their friends and family could witness.

He already had plans for the ceremony, something still intimate and small, in which they would enjoy good company and good food. There would a wide range of music that would play in the background so he could pull Chloe up to her feet whenever he felt the desire and dance gracefully among the crowd, smiling as she laughed at his amusing antics. The ceremony would be in Star City, of course, in the place where Oliver and Chloe had already begun starting a new life together.

His phone vibrated urgently against his leg and he was forced to pause in his musings to see who needed him: Tess Mercer. A part of him knew he couldn't bring himself to do so. Instead, he closed the call and pocketed the phone. As he continued on feeling numb, distantly justified his uncharacteristic behavior.

If there was trouble, the entire Justice League was on alert. They were there to save the day so that Clark and Lois could get married, and so that Oliver and Chloe could be by their side to celebrate what needed to be their happiest day. For just one day, Oliver convinced himself despite the nagging sensation in his gut, his mission wasn't to be a hero, his mission was to be the best man.

The nasty churning at the bottom of his stomach remained. But he did his best to ignore it, concentrating instead of keeping the rings safe, texting Chloe so as to make sure Lois wasn't backing out, calling everyone else to make sure everything set, and then going to find Clark.

The mere thought of seeing Clark gave Oliver a migraine, a part of his subconscious warning him that something was wrong, and that Clark needed to know about what it was. However, even Oliver couldn't guess what was causing the internal panic, and he scoffed away his instincts.

He searched the Daily Planet, viewed the camera on his phone of the Watchtower, went back to the church, and then visited the Kent farm. There was no sign of Clark. When he texted the news to Chloe, she just teased, "I'm pretty sure it's the best man's job to get the groom to the wedding."

He figured he deserved that after his similar remark to her that morning, but he still urged, "Besides Lois, you know him better than anyone. Where do you think he'd have gone?"

"I'm not sure, but give yourself credit Ollie. You know him too."

To his surprise, when he disconnected the call, he did have an idea of where Clark would be. For on one of his happiest days of his life, Oliver knew where he himself would have gone, and he began to suspect his friend may share that trait.

"What is it about the happiest day of your life that makes it so sad?" he wondered out loud when he reached the graveyard, seeing Clark stand before his father's grave. '

He was disappointed, but not altogether shocked when Clark shared his doubts about the decision to marry Lois. With a sense of defeat clear in his dark eyes, Clark confessed, "I thought Lois was my future. I thought she was my new life and my destiny, but what if she's part of the memories I need to leave behind. What if heroes aren't destined to love?"

Oliver was tempted to call 'bullshit', but he managed to reign himself in. This was no time for his usual dark and dry banter. This was a time to be serious, to convince Clark that he deserved this piece of happiness for himself and no one else (expect Lois), and to share the wisdom that Oliver had been able to procure over the last year and a half - a wisdom he would hold over Clark at a later date. Oliver had to let the other man know that love was the best reason to continue on with the future...while still accepting the past that had brought him to where he was, and to whom it had brought him to.

For it had been his past (both that of Oliver Queen and Green Arrow) that had brought him to Chloe. Without that essential part of himself, he would never have had her by his side as he did now.

In much the same way, all that Clark had been had brought him to Lois, and it was through that that would create their future. A future that was actually worth living for.

It was a beautiful thing, Oliver thought in a not so rare moment of romantic notions, especially when he stood off to the side on the altar of the church, watching Clark and Lois walk down the aisle hand in hand.

Clark stood confidently at the other end of the church, a complete shift in mood from when Oliver had found him when in the graveyard. Lois was absolutely gorgeous, even more so than usual. Love and happiness radiated from her entire being and that joy consumed the church.

Across from him, Chloe was smiling, caught up in the beauty of the ceremony. Not necessarily in the ceremony itself, but in what it represented: love, trust, commitment, a promise being made between two people that would only serve to strengthen the already unshakeable bond of soul mates.

Soon Clark and Lois reached the altar, standing in front of gathered loved ones but only having attention to one another. They said their vows, tears gleaming in their eyes, as well as many in the crowd, and the pastor called for the rings.

Oliver reached for the rings to present them to amazing couple, but suddenly it was as if Oliver was a thousands of miles away. The second he touched the box that the rings were being held in, the darkness consumed him. It didn't matter that only moments before he'd been filled with nothing but content, nor that his bright light was a mere five feet away. All that was left of him was darkness.


End file.
